With little more than a week to go before the Nov. 3 election, the issue to legalize the use of marijuana has registered voters evenly divided, according to the latest Buckeye Poll released by The University of Akron’s Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics.
Dr. John C. Green
Of the three state ballot issues going before voters in 2015, Issue 3, pertaining to the legalization of marijuana, is viewed as the most important, the poll showed.
Driving voter turnout
“Issue 3 is likely to drive turnout this November,” said Dr. John C. Green, director of UA’s Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, “and the outcome will be determined by the mix of voters that actually cast ballots.”
According to findings based on 1,074 Ohio registered voters:
- A majority of registered voters is supportive of Issue 1 (redistricting), 55 percent to 16 percent, with 29 percent undecided;
- A plurality is supportive of Issue 2 (monopoly), 40 percent to 27 percent, with 32 percent undecided;
- Support is evenly divided on Issue 3 (legalizing marijuana) 46 percent to 46 percent with 8 percent undecided;
- Most registered voters report reading or hearing about Issue 3, but much fewer have received information about Issues 1 and 2.
'Significant opposition' remains
“The survey shows that support for Issue 3 has increased in recent weeks,” said Green, “but there is still significant opposition.”
The survey was conducted by telephone with a cell phone component between Sept. 1 and Oct. 1, 2015, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. The full report is available on the Bliss Institute website.
Media contact: Lisa Craig, 330-972-7429 or lmc91@uakron.edu.