Photo by futureatlas.com

Last night, District voters overwhelmingly voted to legalize marijuana in the city. But that doesn’t mean you can legally possess pot now, there’s still a lot that needs to happen—and a lot more that probably will happen—before legalization takes effect.

One of the big potential roadblocks that could stand in the way of marijuana legalization in D.C. is Congress. Initiative 71, like all local legislation, has to go through a 60-day Congressional review period before it can go into effect, wherein Congress can strike it down, with support from the House, Senate, and the President. But be warned politicians who try to stand in the way of marijuana legalization: D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton—was reelected last night—is ready to give you “the fight of [your] lives.”

In a release, Norton said “the people have spoken and D.C. residents can rest assured that when a mandate comes directly from the people, they haven’t seen a fight like the fight I’m preparing to make against Rep. Andy Harris and any other Member of Congress who attempts to undo our democratic process.”

When D.C.’s marijuana decriminalization law was under Congressional review this summer, Maryland Rep. Andy Harris added an amendment to the fiscal year 2015 Appropriations bill to stop implementation of the law. Ultimately, it fell apart, but it did cause a raucous among many Washingtonians, who weren’t happy with a non-D.C. politician meddling in local affairs.

A request for comment from Rep. Harris about Initiative 71 passing has yet to be returned.

“Initiative 71 is not just about the legalization of marijuana; it addresses an intolerable racial disparity in our city that has crippled the life chances of countless African Americans and Hispanics,” Norton added in her statement. “We have not been able to conquer the racial disparity between Black and White marijuana convictions. What we can do with legalization is to take away the instrument that causes this inequality.”