Politics
Missouri filing ends with secretary of state race shakeup
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Plenty of adjectives describe the 2024 election cycle in Missouri: Wild. Unpredictable. Expensive.But one stood out as the candidate filing period closed Tuesday: Crowded.Missouri Republicans and Democrats have large primaries for key statewide and congressional posts. Some of the races feature so many legitimate contenders that it’s basically impossible to determine a frontrunner. And some current officeholders will face real challenges for re-election in August, including two statewide officials who received appointments for treasurer and attorney general.While the state still leans toward the GOP, how united Missouri Democrats will be after the August 6 intraparty contests could show whether Democratic efforts to rebuild have borne fruit.Here are seven takeaways from the end of the state and local filing period:
Tristen Rouse
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St. Louis Public RadioSpeaker of the House Dean Plocher, R-St. Louis County, is running for secretary of state instead of lieutenant governor.
1. A whole new race for secretary of stateWhen Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden pulled the plug on his bid for secretary of state, the big question in Missouri Politics Land was whether another major GOP candidate would try to fill the Columbia Republican’s void.The answer: four viable candidates entered the fray: St. Louis County politico Jamie Corley, House Speaker Dean Plocher, state Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman and Wentzville municipal judge Mike CarterCorley is a former communications director and press secretary for several members of Congress, and recently tried to get an abortion legalization measure off the ground. Plocher, R-Des Peres, and Coleman, R-Jefferson County, were running for lieutenant governor and Missouri’s 3rd Congressional District respectively, but switched on Tuesday to the secretary of state’s race. And Carter, who narrowly lost a primary for a state Senate seat in 2022, was a last-minute entrant before the filing deadline.All four candidates have the potential to be well funded. Corley and Carter could pour their own money into the race, while Plocher has a large campaign warchest and Coleman has proven to be an adept fundraiser. They’ll join a field that includes St. Louis resident Valentina Gomez, Greene County Clerk Shane Schoeller, state Rep. Adam Schwadron, R-St. Charles County, and state Sen. Denny Hoskins, R-Warrensburg.State Rep. Barbara Phifer, D-Kirkwood, is running against St. Louis residents Haley Jacobson and Monique Williams in the Democratic primary for statewide posts.
Tristen Rouse
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St. Louis Public RadioMissouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, photographed on Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024, at the attorney general’s office in the Missouri Supreme Court in Jefferson City, Mo. Bailey is taking on Will Scharf in the GOP primary.
2. Appointed statewide officials won’t get a free passFour years ago, then-state Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick and then-Attorney General Eric Schmitt didn’t face primary challenges after Gov. Mike Parson appointed them to fill out unexpired terms. Treasurer Vivek Malek and Attorney General Andrew Bailey aren’t as lucky as their predecessors this year.Bailey will square off against St. Louis County attorney Will Scharf. Scharf, who previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney and policy director for Gov. Eric Greitens, has raised more than a million dollars in his campaign account.. He’s also served as an attorney for former President Donald Trump, which could be a useful attribute in a GOP primary.Bailey has chastised Scharf as an out of touch elitist, derisively calling him ‘Wall Street Willy.’ The attorney general has also sought to raise his profile with lawsuits against Media Matters, a Washington, D.C.-based progressive media watchdog group, and emergency rules that would have greatly restricted adults from accessing hormone therapy or gender transition surgery. He also stocked up a large campaign warchest in his battle against Scharf.Treasurer races are generally lower profile than other statewide posts, but Malek will have to get past four Republicans — House Budget Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, state Sen. Andrew Bailey, R-Manchester, Springfield attorney Lori Rook, St. Joseph resident Tina Goodrick and Berkeley resident Karan Pujji — to get a full four-year term.Democrats will have a much easier choice in August: Elad Gross was the only Democratic candidate who filed for attorney general, while Mark Osmack, who ran for Missouri’s 2nd Congressional District in 2018, will be the party’s sole treasurer nominee.
Tristen Rouse
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St. Louis Public RadioState Sen. Karla May, D-St. Louis, and Lucas Kunce attend the Truman Dinner on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023, at the Marriott Grand Hotel in Downtown St. Louis. The two are competing in the 2024 Democratic senate primary, looking to eventually challenge Republican incumbent Josh Hawley.
3. No last minute challenger in race to take on HawleyOn the final day of filing in 2022, Democratic Senate hopeful Lucas Kunce received a not-so-fun surprise when Anheuser-Busch heir Trudy Busch Valentine jumped into the ring. She ultimately beat Kunce after drawing on her fortune to outspend him.Kunce is back this year, but no last-minute challenger. He’ll face state Sen. Karla May, D-St. Louis, Columbia resident December Harmon and St. Louis resident Mita Biswas in the August primary. The winner will face incumbent U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley.On paper, Kunce is the clear favorite in the race since he’s raised nearly $5.5 million and received endorsements from a bevy of labor unions. He’s also been in the race longer and may have more name recognition because of his unsuccessful 2022 bid.May, though, notes that she’s won before when she’s been outspent — including in 2018 when she defeated state Sen. Jake Hummel. She may also receive some support from the state’s Black political officials, though Kunce has some high-profile backers from May’s backyard, including St. Louis County Councilwoman Shalonda Webb and state Rep. Rasheen Aldridge.Most national elections publications believe Hawley is favored for a second term, but the GOP lawmaker has said he expects an expensive and competitive re-election bid.
Dominick Williams
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for the Kansas City BeaconFrom left: Missouri Sen. Bill Eigel; Joplin businessman Chris Wright; Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft; and Missouri Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe shake hands following the Governor’s Forum during the Lincoln Days event Feb. 17, 2024 in Kansas City.
4. Governor’s race to be competitive — on both sidesThe major candidates on the GOP side include Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe and state Sen. Bill Eigel. All three have been running for the post for months, and have raised millions of dollars collectively for what’s expected to be a combative primary.Democrats will also have a competitive primary: House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, will take on Springfield businessman Mike Hamra. Hamra has already raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for his gubernatorial bid, while Quade received the backing of labor unions and scores of Democratic lawmakers.Several news outlets, including KSDK and the Kansas City Star, have reported that Hamra voted in Illinois in 2020 — sparking questions about his eligibility to run for governor. But at least one elections expert, attorney Chuck Hatfield, predicted in both articles Hamra will likely survive any legal challenge based on past legal precedent.One person who didn’t get to file for governor was state Rep. Sarah Unsicker. The Shrewsbury Democrat, whose social media posts drew rebuke from her party, said she tried to file on Tuesday, but was once again blocked from the ballot. Missouri Democratic Party officials refused to accept Unsicker’s filing fee on the first day of filing.
Brian Munoz
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St. Louis Public RadioRepublican U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner (MO-02) goes to cast her Midterm ballot alongside her husband Roy, left, on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, at the Ballwin Golf Course and Events Center in Ballwin.
5. Wagner won’t face much GOP competitionIn the waning days of filing, eyes turned to the GOP primary for the 2nd Congressional District after Hawley launched a blistering attack on U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Ballwin, over efforts to compensate St. Louis area residents for radioactive waste exposure.Because the 2nd Congressional District became much more Republican after the 2022 redistricting cycle, Wagner could have been vulnerable in a primary against a candidate who would have run to her right. Wagner has been supportive of providing military assistance to Ukraine and voted to certify the 2020 election.But Tuesday’s deadline came and went with Wagner facing only nominal opposition. One possible opponent, state Sen. Nick Schroer of Defiance, pulled a clever headfake when he released a video that made it seem like he was announcing for office — but instead was joining a new law firm.Assuming Wagner gets past Town and Country resident Peter Pfeifer in August, she’ll face the winner of the Democratic primary between Ray Hartmann and Chuck Sommers. Hartmann is the more well-known candidate of the pair, having spent decades in the public eye as a journalist.
Eric Lee
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St. Louis Public RadioCouncilman Ernie Trakas, District 6, talks during an interview on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024, at the Lawrence K. Roos County Government Building in Clayton. Trakas is facing a GOP primary challenge from G. Michael Archer.
6. County council candidates won’t get free ride to ClaytonOn the local front, several Democratic candidates filed to succeed departing 2nd District County Councilwoman Kelli Dunaway: State Rep. Gretchen Bangert, Creve Coeur City Councilwoman Nicole Greer and Maryland Heights resident Lequeshiah Young. The winner of this race will be heavily favored against Republican Sudhir Rathod, since the northwest St. Louis County-based 2nd District is heavily Democratic.Two sitting members of the County Council will face primary challenges: Webb, the county council’s chairwoman and 4th District councilwoman, will face a rematch from former Councilwoman Rochelle Walton Gray. And 6th District Councilman Ernie Trakas will square off against attorney G. Michael Archer.Trakas’ primary challenge is notable, because he has avoided intraparty competition over the past two election cycles. While he’s long been known to buck party-line votes on the council, he’s angered some GOP activists recently for siding with St. Louis County Executive Sam Page on some issues.South St. Louis County resident Kevin Schartner is running as a Democrat. And while the south St. Louis County-based 6th District is GOP-leaning, it’s not as safe as the 2nd District and 4th District is for the Democrats.
Tristen Rouse
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St. Louis Public RadioSt. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore speaks to members of the media on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, at the Carnahan Courthouse in downtown St. Louis. Gore faces no competition for a four year term this year.
7. Gabe Gore won’t face Democratic primaryAnd for the first time since 2012, there won’t be a competition Democratic primary for St. Louis circuit attorney.Gabe Gore has been running the city prosecutor office since Kim Gardner resigned from the post. Gore, who was appointed by Gov. Parson, hasn’t faced as much scrutiny as Gardner, who faced an avalanche of bipartisan criticism for her management of the office.Another St. Louis elected official who’s likely to waltz to re-election is state Sen. Steve Roberts. The St. Louis Democrat does have a Republican challenger, Robert Vroman, but the 5th District is so heavily Democratic that he’s likely to return to the Senate in 2025.That doesn’t mean the city of St. Louis will be devoid of competitive elections, though. Congresswoman Cori Bush, who represents St. Louis, will have to fend off a tough challenge from St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell and former state Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal to return to Washington, D.C.
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Politics
Poll: Support for Missouri abortion rights amendment growing

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A proposed constitutional amendment legalizing abortion in Missouri received support from more than half of respondents in a new poll from St. Louis University and YouGov.That’s a boost from a poll earlier this year, which could mean what’s known as Amendment 3 is in a solid position to pass in November.SLU/YouGov’s poll of 900 likely Missouri voters from Aug. 8-16 found that 52% of respondents would vote for Amendment 3, which would place constitutional protections for abortion up to fetal viability. Thirty-four percent would vote against the measure, while 14% aren’t sure.By comparison, the SLU/YouGov poll from February found that 44% of voters would back the abortion legalization amendment.St. Louis University political science professor Steven Rogers said 32% of Republicans and 53% of independents would vote for the amendment. That’s in addition to nearly 80% of Democratic respondents who would approve the measure. In the previous poll, 24% of Republicans supported the amendment.Rogers noted that neither Amendment 3 nor a separate ballot item raising the state’s minimum wage is helping Democratic candidates. GOP contenders for U.S. Senate, governor, lieutenant governor, treasurer and secretary of state all hold comfortable leads.“We are seeing this kind of crossover voting, a little bit, where there are voters who are basically saying, ‘I am going to the polls and I’m going to support a Republican candidate, but I’m also going to go to the polls and then I’m also going to try to expand abortion access and then raise the minimum wage,’” Rogers said.Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Kehoe has a 51%-41% lead over Democrat Crystal Quade. And U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley is leading Democrat Lucas Kunce by 53% to 42%. Some GOP candidates for attorney general, secretary of state and treasurer have even larger leads over their Democratic rivals.
Brian Munoz
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St. Louis Public RadioHundreds of demonstrators pack into a parking lot at Planned Parenthood of St. Louis and Southwest Missouri on June 24, 2022, during a demonstration following the Supreme Court’s reversal of a case that guaranteed the constitutional right to an abortion.
One of the biggest challenges for foes of Amendment 3 could be financial.Typically, Missouri ballot initiatives with well-funded and well-organized campaigns have a better chance of passing — especially if the opposition is underfunded and disorganized. Since the end of July, the campaign committee formed to pass Amendment 3 received more than $3 million in donations of $5,000 or more.That money could be used for television advertisements to improve the proposal’s standing further, Rogers said, as well as point out that Missouri’s current abortion ban doesn’t allow the procedure in the case of rape or incest.“Meanwhile, the anti side won’t have those resources to kind of try to make that counter argument as strongly, and they don’t have public opinion as strongly on their side,” Rogers said.There is precedent of a well-funded initiative almost failing due to opposition from socially conservative voters.In 2006, a measure providing constitutional protections for embryonic stem cell research nearly failed — even though a campaign committee aimed at passing it had a commanding financial advantage.Former state Sen. Bob Onder was part of the opposition campaign to that measure. He said earlier this month it is possible to create a similar dynamic in 2024 against Amendment 3, if social conservatives who oppose abortion rights can band together.“This is not about reproductive rights or care for miscarriages or IVF or anything else,” said Onder, the GOP nominee for Missouri’s 3rd Congressional District seat. “Missourians will learn that out-of-state special interests and dark money from out of state is lying to them and they will reject this amendment.”Quade said earlier this month that Missourians of all political ideologies are ready to roll back the state’s abortion ban.“Regardless of political party, we hear from folks who are tired of politicians being in their doctor’s offices,” Quade said. “They want politicians to mind their own business. So this is going to excite folks all across the political spectrum.”
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Democrat Mark Osmack makes his case for Missouri treasurer

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Mark Osmack has been out of the electoral fray for awhile, but he never completely abandoned his passion for Missouri politics.Osmack, a Valley Park native and U.S. Army veteran, previously ran for Missouri’s 2nd Congressional District seat and for state Senate. Now he’s the Democratic nominee for state treasurer after receiving a phone call from Missouri Democratic Party Chairman Russ Carnahan asking him to run.“There’s a lot of decision making and processing and evaluation that goes into it, which is something I am very passionate and interested in,” Osmack said this week on an episode of Politically Speaking.Osmack is squaring off against state Treasurer Vivek Malek, who was able to easily win a crowded GOP primary against several veteran lawmakers including House Budget Chairman Cody Smith and state Sen. Andrew Koenig.While Malek was able to attract big donations to his political action committee and pour his own money into the campaign, Osmack isn’t worried that he won’t be able to compete in November. Since Malek was appointed to his post, Osmack contends he hasn’t proven that he’s a formidable opponent in a general election.“His actions and his decision making so far in his roughly two year tenure in that office have been questionable,” Osmack said.Among other things, Osmack was critical of Malek for placing unclaimed property notices on video gaming machines which are usually found in gas stations or convenience stores. The legality of the machines has been questioned for some time.As Malek explained on his own episode of Politically Speaking, he wanted to make sure the unclaimed property program was as widely advertised as possible. But he acknowledged it was a mistake to put the decals close to the machines and ultimately decided to remove them.Osmack said: “This doesn’t even pass the common sense sniff test of, ‘Hey, should I put state stickers claiming you might have a billion dollars on a gambling machine that is not registered with the state of Missouri?’ If we’re gonna give kudos for him acknowledging the wrong thing, it never should have been done in the first place.”Osmack’s platform includes supporting programs providing school meals using Missouri agriculture products and making child care more accessible for the working class.He said the fact that Missouri has such a large surplus shows that it’s possible to create programs to make child care within reach for parents.“It is quite audacious for [Republicans] to brag about $8 billion, with a B, dollars in state surplus, while we offer next to no social services to include pre-K, daycare, or child care,” Osmack said.Here’s are some other topics Osmack discussed on the show:How he would handle managing the state’s pension systems and approving low-income housing tax credits. The state treasurer’s office is on boards overseeing both of those programs.Malek’s decision to cut off investments from Chinese companies. Osmack said that Missouri needs to be cautious about abandoning China as a business partner, especially since they’re a major consumer of the state’s agriculture products. “There’s a way to make this work where we are not supporting communist nations to the detriment of the United States or our allies, while also maintaining strong economic ties that benefit Missouri farmers,” he said.What it was like to witness the skirmish at the Missouri State Fair between U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley and Democratic challenger Lucas Kunce.Whether Kunce can get the support of influential groups like the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which often channels money and staff to states with competitive Senate elections.
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As Illinois receives praise for its cannabis equity efforts, stakeholders work on system’s flaws

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Medical marijuana patients can now purchase cannabis grown by small businesses as part of their allotment, Illinois’ top cannabis regulator said, but smaller, newly licensed cannabis growers are still seeking greater access to the state’s medical marijuana customers.Illinois legalized medicinal marijuana beginning in 2014, then legalized it for recreational use in 2020. While the 2020 law legalized cannabis use for any adult age 21 or older, it did not expand licensing for medical dispensaries.Patients can purchase marijuana as part of the medical cannabis program at dual-purpose dispensaries, which are licensed to serve both medical and recreational customers. But dual-purpose dispensaries are greatly outnumbered by dispensaries only licensed to sell recreationally, and there are no medical-only dispensaries in the state.As another part of the adult-use legalization law, lawmakers created a “craft grow” license category that was designed to give more opportunities to Illinoisans hoping to legally grow and sell marijuana. The smaller-scale grow operations were part of the 2020 law’s efforts to diversify the cannabis industry in Illinois.Prior to that, all cultivation centers in Illinois were large-scale operations dominated by large multi-state operators. The existing cultivators, mostly in operation since 2014, were allowed to grow recreational cannabis beginning in 2019.Until recently, dual-purpose dispensaries have been unsure as to whether craft-grown products, made by social equity licensees — those who have lived in a disproportionately impacted area or have been historically impacted by the war on drugs — can be sold medicinally as part of a patient’s medical allotment.Erin Johnson, the state’s cannabis regulation oversight officer, told Capitol News Illinois last month that her office has “been telling dispensaries, as they have been asking us” they can now sell craft-grown products to medical patients.“There was just a track and trace issue on our end, but never anything statutorily,” she said.
Dilpreet Raju
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Capitol News IllinoisThe graphic shows how cannabis grown in Illinois gets from cultivation centers to customers.
No notice has been posted, but Johnson’s verbal guidance comes almost two years after the first craft grow business went online in Illinois.It allows roughly 150,000 medical patients, who dispensary owners say are the most consistent purchasers of marijuana, to buy products made by social equity businesses without paying recreational taxes. However — even as more dispensaries open — the number available to medical patients has not increased since 2018, something the Cannabis Regulation Oversight Office “desperately” wants to see changed. Johnson said Illinois is a limited license state, meaning “there are caps on everything” to help control the relatively new market.Berwyn Thompkins, who operates two cannabis businesses, said the rules limited options for patients and small businesses.“It’s about access,” Thompkins said. “Why wouldn’t we want all the patients — which the (adult-use) program was initially built around — why wouldn’t we want them to have access? They should have access to any dispensary.”Customers with a medical marijuana card pay a 1% tax on all marijuana products, whereas recreational customers pay retail taxes between roughly 20 and 40% on a given cannabis product, when accounting for local taxes.While Illinois has received praise for its equity-focused cannabis law, including through an independent study that showed more people of color own cannabis licenses than in any other state, some industry operators say they’ve experienced many unnecessary hurdles getting their businesses up and running.The state, in fact, announced last month that it had opened its 100th social equity dispensary.But Steve Olson, purchasing manager at a pair of dispensaries (including one dual-purpose dispensary) near Rockford, said small specialty license holders have been left in the lurch since the first craft grower opened in October 2022.“You would think that this would be something they’re (the government) trying to help out these social equity companies with, but they’re putting handcuffs on them in so many different spots,” he said. “One of them being this medical thing.”Olson said he contacted state agencies, including the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, months ago about whether craft products can be sold to medical patients at their retail tax rate, but only heard one response: “They all say it was an oversight.”This potentially hurt social equity companies because they sell wholesale to dispensaries and may have been missing out on a consistent customer base through those medical dispensaries.Olson said the state’s attempts to provide licensees with a path to a successful business over the years, such as with corrective lotteries that granted more social equity licenses, have come up short.“It’s like they almost set up the social equity thing to fail so the big guys could come in and swoop up all these licenses,” Olson said. “I hate to feel like that but, if you look at it, it’s pretty black and white.”Olson said craft companies benefit from any type of retail sale.“If we sell it to medical patients or not, it’s a matter of, ‘Are we collecting the proper taxes?’ That’s all it is,” he said.State revenue from cannabis taxes, licensing costs and other fees goes into the Cannabis Regulation Fund, which is used to fund a host of programs, including cannabis offense expungement, the general revenue fund, and the R3 campaign aiming to uplift disinvested communities.For fiscal year 2024, nearly $256 million was paid out from Cannabis Regulation Fund for related initiatives, which includes almost $89 million transferred to the state’s general revenue fund and more than $20 million distributed to local governments, according to the Illinois Department of Revenue.Medical access still limitedThe state’s 55 medical dispensaries that predate the 2020 legalization law, mostly owned by publicly traded multistate operators that had been operating in Illinois since 2014 under the state’s medical marijuana program, were automatically granted a right to licenses to sell recreationally in January 2020. That gave them a dual-purpose license that no new entrants into the market can receive under current law.Since expanding their clientele in 2020, Illinois dispensaries have sold more than $6 billion worth of cannabis products through recreational transactions alone.Nearly two-thirds of dispensaries licensed to sell to medical patients are in the northeast counties of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and Will. Dual-purpose dispensaries only represent about 20 percent of the state’s dispensaries.While the state began offering recreational dispensary licenses since the adult-use legalization law passed, it has not granted a new medical dispensary license since 2018. That has allowed the established players to continue to corner the market on the state’s nearly 150,000 medical marijuana patients.But social equity licensees and advocates say there are more ways to level the playing field, including expanding access to medical sales.Johnson, who became the state’s top cannabis regulator in late 2022, expressed hope for movement during the fall veto session on House Bill 2911, which would expand medical access to all Illinois dispensaries.“We would like every single dispensary in Illinois to be able to serve medical patients,” Johnson said. “It’s something that medical patients have been asking for, for years.”Johnson said the bill would benefit patients and small businesses.“It’s something we desperately want to happen as a state system, because we want to make sure that medical patients are able to easily access what they need,” she said. “We also think it’s good for our social equity dispensaries, as they’re opening, to be able to serve medical patients.”Rep. Bob Morgan, D-Deerfield, who was the first statewide project coordinator for Illinois’ medical cannabis program prior to joining the legislature, wrote in an email to Capitol News Illinois that the state needs to be doing more for its patients.“Illinois is failing the state’s 150,000 medical cannabis patients with debilitating conditions. Too many are still denied the patient protections they deserve, including access to their medicine,” Morgan wrote, adding he would continue to work with stakeholders on further legislation.Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government. It is distributed to hundreds of newspapers, radio and TV stations statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation, along with major contributions from the Illinois Broadcasters Foundation and Southern Illinois Editorial Association.
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