The Government has announced the date of the next general election – and the cannabis referendum – to be held on September 19, 2020.
On election day there will also be two referendums; one to make cannabis legal, and the other about euthanasia.
The cannabis referendum will ask a simple Yes/No question:
Do you support the proposed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill?
Yes, I support the proposed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill.
No, I do not support the proposed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill.
The parties that make up the current Government (Labour, Greens and New Zealand First) have agreed to make the cannabis referendum result binding. However the National Party and ACT have refused to commit to implementing the result (if they don’t like it!).
You must be enrolled to vote, in order to vote in the referendum.
We cannot stress enough how important it is that you, and all your friends, enrol to vote and then do actually vote!
You can enrol or check your enrolment status at vote.nz, at any Post Shop, or by calling 0800 36 76 56. Do it now!
Turnout among our supporters could be the difference between winning and losing the referendum.
How about holding an election day party, for voters only? Or call all your mates on election morning and remind them to vote – then check again in the afternoon. You could also arrange car pools or drivers for those less able to get themselves to a polling booth.
Find out more about the cannabis referendum
- The Government has set up a website with more information
- Download a copy of the Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill
- NZ Govt Summary of current policy positions (PDF 729KB)
- Cabinet paper: 2020 cannabis referendum – draft material for public release (PDF 1.5MB)
- Read the NZ Drug Foundation guide to the referendum
- Make It Legal campaign page
- Make It Legal donations (give-a-little)
- Download or read NORML’s leaflets