Kaish is joined by others opposing Issue No. 3 including state attorney general Mike DeWine, the Libertarian Party of Ohio, the Green Party of Ohio and the Drug Party Alliance.
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The news comes, no doubt, as a heavy blow to slacker teens and hacky sack enthusiast (do those exist anymore?) across Ohio, as well as former 98 Degrees person, Nick Lachey.
The issue would have allowed 10 companies in the state to grow and sell marijuana to manufacturers and 1,100 voter-approved retail stores.
The USA state of Ohio had been in the center of talks as a certain group of its population are suggesting and even advertising the promotion to legalize marijuana for recreational use.
Pot legalization in Ohio would have been a big deal politically.
The initiative was sponsored by ResponsibleOhio, which gathered up 10 sets of investors willing to pony up $2 million each to get one of the 10 commercial marijuana cultivation envisioned in the initiative.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve never been a user”. The other part of me feels like we could see national legalization/decriminalization soon, too. “To win and make this kind of change for social justice, it does cost a lot of money”, James was quoted as saying by the Los Angeles Times.
The failed Ohio measure indeed may have shifted a few attitudes: Ohio Auditor Dave Yost, a vocal opponent of the pot measure, said Tuesday he now supports legalizing medical marijuana alone, partly thanks to conversations he had while campaigning against Issue 3. According to a Quinnipiac University poll, 52 percent of Ohio residents support legal cannabis for recreational use.
ResponsibleOhio, the group that backed Issue 3 and lead the fight in securing it a spot on Tuesday night’s ballot, included its own monopoly on the state’s future marijuana industry if the bill passed, the Atlantic reports.
In that case, experts expected the marijuana-initiative supporters to take the matter to court.
Timothy Shearer, 47, said he voted “yes” on legalization and “no” on the anti-monopoly measure. It was leading, 52 percent to 48 percent, with 76 percent of precincts reporting.
ResponsibleOhio’s proposed constitutional amendment would have legalized marijuana for personal or recreational use, as well as for medical purposes, with the production, processing and sale regulated by a state-appointed commission.
“What was most offensive about [the Ohio measure] was that they wanted to make it a constitutionally mandated oligopoly in perpetuity”. The rejection comes despite recent surveys that show most of Ohio would actually support the legalization of marijuana; the problem here was the specifics of the bill and the greed of the companies that were pushing the campaign.
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On Twitter, Angell also scolded the measure’s backers using the hashtag #HowNotToLegalizeMarijuana.
