With interest in topics like “marijuana” and “cannabis” hitting all-time high levels according to Google Trends, nine states in the U.S. will vote on marijuana measures in the world’s most important general election Nov. 8, according to the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center.

Voters in California, Florida, Nevada, Massachusetts, Maine, Arizona, and Arkansas will definitely be casting a ballot to affect cannabis policy in their state. Voters in Missouri, Montana, and North Dakota have submitted signatures to place marijuana proposals on the ballot, while Oklahoma has cleared to circulate a last-minute measure.

This is going to be a transformative year for the United States. Not only are we set to vote in a new president for the first time in eight years this November, but we could also see the most rapid expansion of marijuana ever, with eight states now set to vote on recreational or medical cannabis initiatives or amendments this fall.

What's at stake

The expansion of the cannabis industry was initially put in motion 20 years ago when California approved a compassionate use law for medical marijuana. Today, half of all U.S. states have approved a medical marijuana law. The two most recent approvals came from Pennsylvania and Ohio, which used the legislative process to pass medical cannabis laws.

You've probably seen them around town asking you to sign their petitions.

Wednesday marked a deadline for various efforts to legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use in Arkansas.

Proposals must have been advertised in newspapers statewide or they are disqualified.

Three ballot initiatives announced Wednesday they made the cut.

"I just think the people of Arkansas need to be able to have a choice of the medicines they use," said Gary Fults, a supporter of the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Act.  

It would allow doctors to recommend marijuana for 56 qualifying conditions.
    
There would be a minimum of 39 dispensaries and grow centers which would be regulated by the Department of Health.

Marijuana legalization has been growing like a weed for the past two decades, but 2016 could prove to be its most monumental year yet. Although marijuana has gained 24 state approvals for medicinal use, and four states have legalized its recreational use, we could see up to 12 separate approvals for the currently illicit drug in November.

This expansion is especially important because current President Barack Obama has suggested that the best way to get the attention of Congress is to continue legalizing the drug at the state level. Doing so would eventually force lawmakers to reconsider the federal government's current Schedule 1 stance on the drug.

By the end of this year, several more states in the U.S. could be among those who have legalized cannabis for medical and recreational purposes. Of course, their success is up to the activists and voters in each state. If you’re in one of these states, here is what you need to know.

States where recreational legalization is on the ballot: Nevada

States where medical legalization is on the ballot: Florida

States where activists are going through the legislature or attempting to make the ballot for recreational or medical legalization: California, Vermont, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Ohio, Michigan, Rhode Island, Maine, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Utah, Arkansas

Long Shots

Voters in 20 U.S. states could potentially legalize some form of cannabis use in the November 2016 election — part of a historic backlash to the century-old war on marijuana.

According to Ballotpedia, the encyclopedia of American politics, activists have submitted ballot measures for public vote in: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge has approved a proposed constitutional amendment to legalize marijuana in Arkansas.

Rutledge approved the proposed constitutional amendment titled, "The Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment of 2016" that was submitted by Little Rock lawyer David Couch.

Now that the proposal has been certified, supporters can work to gather the nearly 85,000 signatures from registered voters required to qualify for the November ballot.

Rutledge had previously rejected five marijuana proposals in the last five months citing issues of ambiguities.

LITTLE ROCK (KATV) —

Arkansas' attorney general has now rejected seven marijuana ballot titles since taking office, the latest one on Wednesday. Little Rock Attorney David Couch, who filed two of them, plans to file an amended version next week.

Most of the reasons given by Attorney General Leslie Rutledge for her rejections were ambiguous language according to her rejection letters. Rutledge's Spokesman Judd Deere tells Channel 7 News she has made it clear that her rejections have no reflection of her views on medicinal or recreational marijuana.

Legalize it, so long as it's spelled correctly. Like, the weed and everything pertaining to the weed. Apparently, Arkansas paid no attention to the second part. A proposal to legalize weed in Arkansas was turned down due to spelling errors and “ambiguities in text."

Arkansas Attorney General, Leslie Rutledge, said “errors of grammar, punctuation and spelling” were the reason they had to shut it down, according to the Associated Press. The proposal, which was written by Marry Berry, a resident of Summit, Arkansas, called for free use of the plant, including growing and cultivating. 

The "Arkansans for Compassionate Care" group along with local military veterans gathered at the State Capitol steps Saturday, May 23 in support of legalizing Medical Marijuana.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) - A group of military veterans used the holiday weekend to rally for a cause.

The "Arkansans for Compassionate Care" group alongside local military veterans gathered on the steps of the state capitol to fight for medical marijuana in Arkansas.

The pro-medical-cannabis group believes that veterans could benefit from the illegal plant, especially when dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder.