While this week’s election saw major cannabis referendums fail in Florida and North Dakota, Kentucky showed overwhelming support for medical cannabis.
In a historic show of support, every single one of the 106 counties and cities in Kentucky that held a ballot referendum on Tuesday voted to allow medical cannabis businesses to operate within their jurisdictions.
This unanimous approval sets the stage for the state’s medical cannabis program, launching on January 1, 2025.
The landslide victories were consistent across the state, with:
- 100% of the 106 ballot referendums passing (53 counties and 53 cities)
- 67% of county voters (341,766 people) and a nearly identical percentage of city voters supporting the measure
- The largest margins of victory in:
- Marion County and Nelson County, with over 75% of voters in favor (notably, two of the three counties once home to the infamous “Cornbread Mafia”)
- Bardstown, with a whopping 78% of voters approving the measure
Even in areas with lower margins, the outcome was still decisive. The closest a ballot measure came to failing was in Union, Boone County, where 52% of voters ultimately approved cannabis businesses.
Other notable approvals include:
- Shelbyville, Shelby County: 72% in favor
- Mt. Washington, Bullitt County: 67% in favor
- Florence, Boone County: 64% in favor
- Independence, Kenton County: 63% in favor
Interestingly, Manchester, Clay County, home to Republican Senate President Robert Stivers (a former opponent of medical cannabis legalization), voted 69% in favor, with 68% of Clay County voters also approving the measure.
While 20 counties and over 40 cities have opted out of allowing medical cannabis businesses through local ordinances, patients with prescriptions will still be permitted to possess and use medical cannabis in these areas.
The state is currently awarding licenses to cultivators, processors, and dispensaries through a lottery system, with nearly 50 dispensary licenses to be awarded by the end of the year.
Kentucky’s Medical Cannabis Program: By the Numbers
- Launch date: January 1, 2025
- Number of counties/cities with ballot referendums: 106 (53 counties, 53 cities)
- Number of ballot referendums passed: 106 (100%)
- Average voter approval rate: approximately 67%
- Largest margin of victory: 78% (Bardstown)
- Smallest margin of victory: 52% (Union, Boone County)
