LAKE ELSINORE MEDICAL MARIJUANA INITIATIVE FAILS TO MAKE THE
BALLOT

Lake Elsinore voters won't decide whether they want medical marijuana
dispensaries in the city because backers of the proposal didn't gather
enough valid signatures to put the measure on the ballot, election
officials said Tuesday.

The group We the People gathered 870 valid signatures of registered
voters, about half the 1,623 needed to qualify the measure for the
Nov. 2 general election, according to the Riverside County registrar
of voters.

The group gathered a total of 2,678 signatures, which were sent to the
registrar's office on June 17 for verification. The Lake Elsinore city
clerk's office received the results Tuesday.

News of the failure stunned Wayne Williams, a We the People spokesman
who led the signature drive.

"I'm bummed right now," Williams said by phone. "I want to know how
they disqualified that many."

Williams said he was sure he had gathered enough valid signatures to
qualify for the ballot.

He said he and others who carried the petitions went only to homes of
registered voters. He said he made sure they questioned those they
approached in public places to ensure that they were registered in
Lake Elsinore.

"When we went to gas stations and minimarts, we asked specifically,
'Are you registered in Lake Elsinore?' " Williams said. "I played it
safe. I'm actually floored right now."

A breakdown of the registrar's results shows a variety of reasons for
the rejected signatures.

Among the reasons for rejection: 645 were not registered voters; 203
were not residents of the city; 130 were registered at a different
address; and 59 signed more than once, the registrar's report stated.
Another 710 were rejected because the signatures did not match the
voter registration card and 32 signatures could not be identified, the
report said.

"I'm curious about the signatures that didn't match," Williams
said.

Williams, of Wildomar, began the signature drive in December as Lake
Elsinore adopted a temporary ban on medical marijuana businesses.

Williams said he was concerned about the number of unlicensed medical
marijuana dispensaries in and around Lake Elsinore. One business in
the city was closed recently after the City Council turned down an
appeal of the business license revocation. The license allowed sales
of clothing and holistic medicines, but not medical marijuana.

Williams could start another drive to get a dispensary measure on the
ballot, but it is unlikely it could be completed in time for the
November ballot. He said he's not sure he wants to do it just yet.

"We gave it a shot," Williams said. "We tried."