CA’s 2016 Legalization Bid & Its Federal Implications

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Although several states are expected to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes in 2016, there is a substantial amount of pressure being applied out West to establish a cannabis industry in the largest state in the union: California. It is there that pot proponents are currently working to develop an initiative aimed at getting the question of legalization on the ballot in the next presidential election — which, depending on its success, could be a tremendous boost for similar campaigns all across the country and ultimately lead to the end of federal prohibition.

“A lot of eyes are on California,” Gavin Newsom, the lieutenant governor of California, recently toldBloomberg. “It’s very different than almost any other state because of the scale and the magnitude of the change and what it will represent across the country.”

Marijuana activists in California believe that despite their failed efforts in the past, legalization is a lock if they can manage to get the issue on the ballot in 2016. A recent poll indicates this might be true, with next year’s election predicted to be a completely different story than in 2010, when legal weed was run out on a rail by 54 percent of the voting population. The latest data, published last month by the Public Policy Institute of California, suggests that 55 percent of the population now stands in favor of regulating the herb in a manner comparable to the alcohol industry, which is an added incentive for supporters to make good with a new proposal.

But it is going to take a lot more than a favorable poll for California to pass this type of initiative. In addition to requiring an immense team of volunteers, these types of campaigns are ultra-expensive to run and will cost millions of dollars to successfully snuff out the plague of those snidely opposing forces. However, experts anticipate that this could be easy to do, as a large chunk of the required campaign finances will likely be donated by cannabis industry figures that are already operating in legal states. Some of these businesses are more than willing to support the cause to legalize weed in California because they are champing at the bit to expand into such an enormous market.