Florida: medical marijuana petition for 2014 ballot validated

cross post from here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024383630 (with embedded links from excerpt, below)

With the help of a massive infusion of money from backer John Morgan, the petition to put medical marijuana on Florida’s Nov. 4 election ballot squeaked past the deadline to get enough petition signatures to qualify for a spot on the state’s Nov. 4 election ballot.

As of Friday, state election officials had verified 710,508 valid petition signatures, with 683,149 needed by Feb. 1 to qualify. That doesn’t make it certain Floridians will get to vote on the measure, however -- one major hurdle remains. The state Supreme Court must approve the legality of the measure and its ballot language. Attorney General Pam Bondi has challenged the language as unclear and misleading. Oral arguments were heard on the challenge in December, and the court must issue a decision by April 1.

If the court approves the language, the result a hard-fought campaign could result. Polls have shown strong public support for the idea of allowing marijuana to be used for medical purposes when prescribed by a doctor -- a Quinnipiac University survey last fall showed Florida voters favored it 82-16 percent. That sounds like a comfortable margin, considering it takes a 60 percent vote to amend the state Constitution.

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http://tbo.com/news/politics/medical-marijuana-has-enough-signatures-for-florida-ballot-20140124/