New Zealand rejects legalising cannabis but votes in favour of euthanasia

Jacinda Ardern revealed she voted "Yes" in the cannabis referendum
April Roach @aprilroach2830 October 2020

New Zealanders voted against legalising cannabis in a binding referendum but were in favour of endorsing euthanasia.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was among those who voted in favour of legalising the drug.

With 53.1 per cent voting against legalising the drug for recreational use and 46.1 per cent voting in favour, the results of the referendum announced on Friday were close.

The preliminary results of the binding referendum do not include an estimated 480,000 special votes, which encompass overseas ballots, and the final outcome will be confirmed on November 6.

It means that once all of the special votes are counted next week, there could be a swing towards the “Yes” vote.

Green Party Drug Law Reform spokesperson Chloe Swarbrick speaks to the media at Albert Park, Aucland on Friday following the referendum results
Getty Images

A referendum on legalising euthanasia was held at the same as the cannabis referendum, alongside the general election earlier this month.

With 65 per cent voting in favour and just 34 per cent against, New Zealanders emphatically endorsed the End of Life Choice Act 2019 coming into force as a new law.

The euthanasia measure will allow terminally ill people, with less than six months to live, the opportunity to choose assisted dying if approved by two doctors.

The campaigns for legalising euthanasia and marijuana have been somewhat overshadowed by the coronavirus pandemic and a parallel political race, in which Ms Ardern and her liberal Labour Party won a second term in a landslide.

In past elections, special votes  have tended to track more liberal than general votes, giving proponents of marijuana legalisation some hope the measure could still pass.

Proponents of legalising the drug were frustrated Ms Ardern would not reveal how she intended to vote ahead of the October 17 ballot.

Many believed an endorsement by Ms Ardern could have boosted support for the measure, but she said she wanted to leave the decision to New Zealanders.

Ms Ardern said on Friday after the results were released that she had voted in favour of both referendums.

Additional reporting by Associated Press.

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