Will Illegal Marijuana Possession Be a Thing of the Past?

In states like Arizona, prohibited marijuana possession is at an all-time high (no pun intended). With the latest win of pot legalization in states just like Colorado, progressives are more bothered than before with the distinct political gridlock in Washington and are aiming a major ballot initiative to push across the country. They are relying on a very favorable electorate in 2016, with a multitude of parties now assisting issues like background check outs for weapons, boosting the minimum wage, and supporting marijuana legalization.

Organizations are now much more hopeful after the substantial success on progressive ballot initiatives presented to the conservative bloc of voters in 2014. In 2016, the more youthful, more liberal voters are anticipated to end up in droves, and establish more major victories. Referendums like gun control, economic justice issues (involving compensated sick leave and equal pay), and marijuana legalization are expected to outnumber those of 2012. This is an obvious sign that liberals are accepting a state-based model that allows them to circumvent the legislature and Congress.

Conservatives, on the contrary, are not taking this lightly and are pledging to put an end to the momentum with a set of rivaling ballot propositions. However, pot legalization advocates technique, particularly, is assumed to do quite effectively, given the jarring demographic differences between midterm and presidential years.

“Especially with gridlock in Washington and fewer states likely to address the least salary legislatively, we’re likely to see more ballot initiatives on the minimum wage and other progressive economic issues,” announced Paul Sonn, general counsel at the National Employment Law Project, an organization that has assisted minimum salary pushes across the U.S. Sonn’s statement reflects on the midterm election, wherein the GOP took back the Senate and made huge gains in the House. It was the smallest voter turnover since 1942, with much younger and minority voters comprising a much smaller sized percent of the voting pool.

Things are appearing much more ideal now for progressives, as minimum-wage-hike success sweep across four hardened red states on November 4th– including, Arkansas, Alaska, Nebraska, and South Dakota. Sonn, however, feels certain that the rise in economic ballot propositions will boost turnout over in the last election phase. Though Sonn can not confirm which new initiatives will be on the ballot, he did say that states like Colorado, New Mexico, Maine, Missouri, and Washington are states where gridlock makes ballot initiatives an appealing alternative.

According to experts, paid sick leave and equal pay propositions are also likely to be on the ballot in 2016. The senior vice president of the Center for American Progress, Arkadi Gerney, introduced the ongoing trend in economic initiatives is greatly in response to the failings of Congress and state legislatures. They merely have not coped with the decades-long wage stagnancy.

More than a few marijuana legalization organizations are also getting ready for the 2016 election in Arizona, Maine, California, Nevada, and Massachusetts. Heads of these groups also say they have a good chance at being on the ballot in Montana and Missouri, as well. They are hopeful due in part to the legalization of marijuana possession in Oregon and Alaska in 2014, and the legalization of the plant’s use and transfer in Washington, D.C. A constitutional amendment requiring a 60% approval did fail in Florida, which would have allowed the use of medical marijuana, but it still pulled in a massive 58% of the vote.

The communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project, Mason Tvert, said the group’s forceful push is also because of the gridlock in state legislature, saying, “In the legislature, you can have a majority of elected officials in support, but it might be held up for five years due to one or two legislators, or a governor threatening a veto.”

It’s true that the nation seems to be more pro-pot as the years keep going, but these updated campaigns will not be won without having a fight. 2012 brought success in states like Colorado and Washington (the first two states to legalize small marijuana possession), but there likewise were some substantial deficits. These consist of the unpleasant loss for recreational marijuana legalization in the bluest parts of Oregon.

Anti-marijuana groups are said to be on the counteroffensive. “We are ramping up our efforts,” said Kevin Sabet, who co-founded the anti-legalization Project SAM (Smart Approaches to Marijuana) with former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.). ”It’s clear that we have a lot of work to do. I’m not looking at this with rose-colored glasses,” Sabet added.

Still, he contended that a spending perk was a fundamental cause for legalization successes. Anti-legalization advocates have badly outspent in both Oregon and Alaska this past cycle.

Sabet will not dismiss some anti-legalization ballot initiatives, either, including those that may probably tie state marijuana policy to federal policy, where ceasing prohibition would certainly be far more challenging. “All options are on the table,” he stated.

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