DEMOCRACY IN ACTION

Oregon Votes to Legalize Possession of Small Amounts of Heroin and Cocaine

Meanwhile, Arizona, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota all passed state ballot measures to legalize recreational cannabis.

Tuesday’s voting may well be remembered in American history books for different reasons—but people in Oregon achieved their own U.S. first by making the state the first to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of hard drugs, including heroin, cocaine, and LSD. The move is aimed at keeping drug users out of jail and giving more access to treatment and recovery instead. While Oregon went furthest, voters throughout the nation slackened their drug laws on Tuesday—Arizona, Montana, and New Jersey, all passed state ballot measures to legalize recreational cannabis use, according to The Guardian, while South Dakota and Mississippi approved medical marijuana usage. DC and Oregon also became the first nationwide to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms. New Jersey’s legalization is likely to increase pressure on New York and Pennsylvania to follow suit.