COLUMBUS, Ohio — A campaign to legalize marijuana for medicinal and recreational use in Ohio faces a Thursday deadline to submit additional petition signatures as it seeks to get the issue before voters this fall.
Organizers for ResponsibleOhio had to gather more signatures after the state’s elections chief said they fell short by roughly 30,000 in meeting the state’s requirement of about 306,000.
Secretary of State Jon Husted’s office would have to verify any new signatures, which have been the subject of increased scrutiny.
ResponsibleOhio claimed earlier this month that it turned in more than 695,000 petition signatures, though Husted’s office said it had received fewer signatures and found thousands were invalid. ResponsibleOhio has said it expects to challenge the evaluation of some signatures that were tossed out.
On Wednesday, Husted named a special investigator to review what he calls “significant disparities” in the group’s petitions. He also subpoenaed the campaign’s executive director, Ian James, and his consulting firm, The Strategy Network, for records to aid in the investigation.
Ohio marijuana
NEW: of The Cannabist Show.
Subscribe to our .
Watch .
James said in a statement Wednesday that ResponsibleOhio followed the law and brought the discrepancies cited by Husted to his office’s attention.
The proposal from ResponsibleOhio would mark one of the nation’s most significant leaps in marijuana policy, taking Ohio from a complete prohibition against cannabis use to legalization for both medical and recreational uses.
The group wants to place a constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would allow adults 21 and over to purchase marijuana for medicinal or recreational use and to grow up to four plants for personal use. It would also set up a network of 10 authorized growing locations around the state, some that have already attracted private investors, and lay out a regulatory and taxation scheme for cannabis.
A separate issue on the fall ballot will ask the state’s voters to ban monopolies and cartels from being added to Ohio’s constitution. It takes aim at the 10 marijuana-growing sites described in the proposed amendment.
If the two amendments appear together on the fall ballot, officials say the anti-monopoly measure is written to prevail.
