Officials halt plans to put recreational marijuana on Nov. ballot

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KAIT/KARK) -The push to have recreational marijuana in Arkansas has come to a halt.

On Wednesday, Aug. 3, a decision by Arkansas election officials put a halt on plans to put a bill allowing the recreational use of marijuana on the November ballot, said content partner KARK.

Petition signatures were submitted to the Arkansas Secretary of State for a constitutional amendment in July by the group Responsible Growth Arkansas.

The petition was signed by Arkansas citizens wanting marijuana use in the state outside the current medical-only restrictions.

Last week, Secretary of State John Thurston said the petition had garnered the required number of signatures to move forward and sent the official signature count on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the plan to add the issue to ballots in Nov. was rejected by the Arkansas State Board of Election Commissioners during the next step of the amendment approval process.

Supporters who still want the amendment on the ballot can file a lawsuit, which would be directly heard by the state Supreme Court.

Region 8 News will update this story as more details become available.