There are nine states and the District of Columbia that have legalized weed for both medical and recreational use.

North Dakota legalized medical marijuana in 2016.

Monday, the North Dakota Legalization Initiative turned in 451 petitions with 18,700 signatures to the Secretary of State to have recreational marijuana put on the November ballot.

To place the statutory initiated measure on the ballot, the petitions had to contain at least 13 thousand 452 signatures.

The ND Legalization Initiative says they've exceeded expectations with all the signatures they got and it's time to have recreational marijuana legal in North Dakota.

The chairman of the measure says it'll separate people who use marijuana medically or recreationally.

"There's a difference between recreational marijuana and medical marijuana. Medical marijuana inherently has to be held to higher standards than recreational marijuana. Cause what's recreational marijuana, it's something that people who aren't sick, who aren't seeking a solution to an illness can use at their leisure. Medical marijuana is designed to be a medicine and a cure," said David Owen, chairman of the measure.

The Secretary of State has 35 days or until August 13th verify the number of signatures to determine whether the measure is on the ballot or not.