Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

Massachusetts legalizes marijuana and strikes down charter school expansion as Clinton cruises in state

Judith Gibson-Okunieff/Collegian
(Judith Gibson-Okunieff/Collegian)

Massachusetts legalized the use of recreational marijuana among those over 21 and struck down a proposed expansion to the state’s charter school program on Tuesday.

Massachusetts also overwhelmingly assigned its’ 11 electoral votes to Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, by a margin of 1,528,750 votes to the 866,955 votes earned by Donald Trump.

Question 1, the statewide referendum on adding an additional license to permit the operation of a new gaming establishment failed, with 977,549 people voting in favor and 1,535,940 voting against.

Question 3, the referendum that “would prohibit any farm owner or operator from knowingly confining any breeding pig, calf raised for veal, or egg-laying hen in a way that prevents the animal from lying down, standing up, fully extending its limbs, or turning around freely” succeeded, garnering 1,992,823 votes in favor as opposed to 571,545 votes against.

The margin of success for Question 4, which legalized recreational marijuana, was 1,379,478 votes in favor to 1,201,801 votes against. It was significantly closer than Question 2, the referendum on charter schools, which only achieved 973,412 votes in favor compared to 1,614,385 against.

The vote count in Amherst served as a more extreme reflection of the state’s results.

Clinton sailed past Trump, reaching 12,030 votes compared to his 1,233. Green Party candidate Jill Stein earned 597 votes, while Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson received 440.

Question 4 passed with ease in Amherst, with 10,737 people voting in favor of it compared to 3,677 voting against.

The margin for Question 2 in Amherst showed 11,105 people voting against it as opposed to 3,188 voting in favor.

Amherst voters opposed Question 1, with 10,425 people voting against it and 3,523 voting in favor. Question 3 was supported by Amherst residents, 11,575 of whom supported it, compared to 2,740 residents voting against it.

Stuart Foster can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @Stuart_C_Foster.

Leave a Comment
More to Discover

Comments (0)

All Massachusetts Daily Collegian Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *