Legalizing Pot Likely to Make California Ballot

Expect an all-out campaign brawl that could make history
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 24, 2010 7:22 AM CDT
Legalizing Pot Likely to Make California Ballot
Trays of marijuana clones and gardening supplies sit underneath grow lights at the Peace in Medicine dispensary in Sebastopol, Calif., Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009.   (AP Photo / Russel A. Daniels)

A proposition to legalize pot in California is all but certain to garner enough signatures to appear on the ballot in November by today’s deadline. Supporters and opponents are already gearing up for the campaign, the LA Times reports. Proponents believe that California’s new, promiscuous medical marijuana culture has changed public perception about the drug, and they expect to raise loads of money through online contributions.

Opponents, meanwhile, expect to draw heavily from the business community, because the law would prohibit discriminating against pot-smoking employees unless it affects their performance. Polls show a slim majority favor legalization, and many think potential tax revenues will prove irresistible. “Whether voters are really there, whether they want to legalize marijuana, I would tend to say no,” says one pollster. “But given the drastic state of the budget,” they might. (More marijuana legalization stories.)

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