Full Breakdown
Steinbach City Administration Rejects Cannabis Plebiscite Petition
By Drooid · · How we work
Background & Context
Cannabis was federally legalized across Canada in 2018. Both Steinbach and the nearby town of Winkler subsequently voted to keep retail sales prohibited. In the summer of 2024, cannabis distributor Toba Grown and retailer Flamingo Plus, together with volunteers, launched a petition drive to meet the provincial requirement of signatures from at least 20 % of registered voters—roughly 2,680 electors—in order to trigger a plebiscite during the municipal election slated for October.
Steinbach Blocks Cannabis Plebiscite
City administration reviewed the petition and declared that more than 3,000 of the roughly 4,000 signatures collected in Steinbach were invalid, falling short of the required threshold. Consequently, the city will not place a cannabis-retail question on the ballot. By contrast, Winkler’s council approved its petition after finding only 280 of 2,200 signatures did not qualify. The next statutory opportunity for Steinbach to hold such a plebiscite will be the municipal election scheduled for 2030.
Official Statements & Responses
City manager Troy Warkentin responded by noting that the 20 % threshold equals 2,680 electors and that a review concluded the petition “didn’t meet the necessary requirements.” Steinbach Mayor Earl Funk and council members declined to comment, and a city-hall communications email stated the matter is not a council issue.
Criticism & Opposition
Jesse Lavoie, president of Toba Grown, condemned the decision, arguing that petition signers were disrespected and that council should be ashamed of its handling of the issue. He also claimed most rejected signatures lacked full street addresses because residents feared privacy breaches and fraud, citing recent incidents involving the local animal shelter and Mayor Funk. Lavoie announced plans to pursue legal action and urged the province to modernize the verification process, including allowing digital address confirmation.
Verbatim Quotes
- “The thousands of people that signed this, they should feel disrespected, and city council, on this specific topic, should be ashamed of themselves,” — Jesse Lavoie, toba grown president
- “We were asking for over a year to go into the city council chambers and make a presentation, have a conversation. That would be a great opportunity for us to be on camera talking with the city council, so people would be less suspicious of us defrauding them,” — Jesse Lavoie, toba grown president