Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, with other top Colorado officeholders, has come out against Amendment 64, which would lift the prohibition on recreational marijuana use and possession for adults 21 and older, says the Washington Times. Voters in two other states, Oregon and Washington, are also considering statewide measures to legalize recreational marijuana. All three initiatives would direct the state to regulate and tax the drug in the same manner as current regulations on liquor. “Colorado is known for many things — marijuana should not be one of them,” says Hickenlooper, a Democrat. That puts him on the same side of the issue as former Republican Gov. Bill Owens, but at odds with the Colorado Democratic Party, which has expressed support in its platform for Amendment 64. Also backing Amendment 64 are two prominent Colorado Republicans, former Rep. Tom Tancredo and state Sen. Shawn Mitchell, in an election that gives new meaning to the phrase “strange bedfellows.”
In the polls, voters are deadlocked on the Colorado measure, with surveys showing support either just above or just below 50 percent. A Public Policy Polling survey released Monday showed the measure ahead, 53 to 43 percentage points, with the rest undecided. Washington's Initiative 502 appears to enjoy the strongest support: a Strategies 360 survey released Monday shows the measure ahead 54 percent to 38 percent. Oregon's Measure 80, which trails by a margin of 49 to 42 percentage points, according to a poll released Tuesday by The Oregonian, faces the longest odds.