Citizens in all 125 of Jalisco’s municipalities are to be polled on whether they believe marijuana use should be decriminalized.
The non-binding ballot will take place during the first week of September and is being organized by the State Electoral Institute (Instituto Electoral y de Participación Ciudadana or IEPC).
The poll was solicited by legislator Enrique Velázquez Gonzalez of the left-of-center Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD), who this week sent a proposal to the State Congress that would permit the cultivation and use of marijuana for medicinal reasons, raise the amount of cannabis permitted for personal use from five to 30 grams and establish new programs and centers to attend to drug addicts.
The law would allow doctors in Jalisco to prescribe marijuana for various degenerative conditions, and allow individuals to grow up to five cannabis plants in their homes.
The poll is also designed to test public opinion on the level of support for the potential future legalization of marijuana that proponents say could decrease drug cartel activity, reduce the prison population and, potentially, be a source of tax revenue for governments.IEPC President Tomas Figueroa said 200 electronic urns will be used for the vote, which will be spread out over five days and cost around 650,000 pesos.
All Mexicans with up-to-date voter credentials will be allowed to participate.
Influential figures such as State Attorney General Carlos Najera and Cardinal Jose Robles, the archbishop of Guadalajara, have stated their opposition to relaxing marijuana laws.
Jalisco Health Secretary Jaime Gonzalez Alvarez said Tuesday that he was “almost certain” that Jalisco would not vote in favor of legalizing cannabis. He said there was a large body of documentation confirming the “great dangers” presented by the recreational use of marijuana and that he would be prepared to debate the issue if asked. He said that while a few doctors here “might prescribe” marijuana for some medical conditions, he did not know of any who have petitioned for the right to do so.
In February, PRD lawmakers in the federal Chamber of Deputies introduced a bill to decriminalize – but not legalize – the possession of marijuana for personal use, allow prescriptions for medical marijuana and permit states to regulate the drug’s production, distribution and sale. Representatives of Mexico City’s Legislative Assembly have also submitted their own bill.
In 2009, Mexico decriminalized the possession of up to five grams of cannabis, but people caught with that amount can still be detained by police.