By Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun
Idaho's campaign to put medical marijuana on the November ballot faces multiple setbacks over signature collection and verification.
The Natural Medicine Alliance of Idaho spent $2 million on paid signature gatherers and turned in roughly 150,000 signatures. To qualify, organizers must collect valid signatures from 6 percent of registered voters statewide and from 6 percent of voters in at least 18 of Idaho's 35 legislative districts—a standard set in 2013. Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane said the initiative has not yet met the legal requirements, while a separate abortion rights initiative led by Melanie Folwell with 1,100 volunteers appears likely to have cleared the threshold. Counties finish verification Tuesday; groups then submit totals to the Secretary of State's Office for a final tally.
In Minidoka County, roughly 4,000 signatures were rejected after a Natural Medicine Alliance contractor arrived at the clerk's office at approximately 5:05 p.m. on May 1—after the close of business. County Clerk Tonya Page declined to count them. The group sued, but Judge W. Reed Cotten ruled June 18 that the signatures were late, noting a departing employee had accepted the petitions but warned the contractor they would still be considered late.
A second problem emerged this month when Deputy Secretary of State Matthew Reiber wrote to the Alliance requiring proof that certain signature gatherers are Idaho residents and at least 18 years old. Idaho law, added in 1999, voids signatures from out-of-state circulators—a requirement only six states impose. "Due to these complaints and a demonstrated inability to verify residency of certain circulators, we have requested all county clerks and their staff review and log circulator information," Reiber wrote. The Alliance has until Tuesday to comply.
McGrane had earlier urged the group to file signatures before the deadline, noting that by late March only about 10,200 had been submitted, fewer than half verified, and that a last-day surge would strain county clerks already managing Idaho's primary election. Ada County Clerk Trent Tripple said organizers delivered nearly 6,000 pages on deadline day. Spokesperson Amanda Watson said the group "will work with the Secretary of State's office to collect any information requested" and is confident the initiative will qualify, though she acknowledged uncertainty about whether the district-level threshold was met.