Ohio's rejection of legal pot leaves its future in question

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The future of marijuana in Ohio faced an uncertain future Wednesday after the resounding defeat of an effort to legalize cannabis for both medical and recreational use in a single vote -- although few believe the fight is over.

The proposal rejected by voters Tuesday is expected to be followed in 2016 by a more conventional legalization initiative, one that doesn't give exclusive growing rights to private investors.

There also is early talk of legislative action to legalize pot for medical use only. State Attorney General Mike DeWine said in May he was studying the plausibility of a tightly crafted medical marijuana proposal.

"I think there is consensus that it's not over and done, that some type of legalization of marijuana in Ohio is still going to be a part of the public discussion," said Joe Cornely of the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation.

Farmers who would have been shut out of growing opportunities under the plan had joined business groups, children's hospitals, the state NAACP and a host of other groups in opposing the initiative brought by a group called ResponsibleOhio.

Gov. John Kasich, a Republican presidential candidate, praised voters for their decision to reject marijuana, which he said would have been bad for families.

The question failed after an expensive campaign, a legal fight over its ballot wording and an investigation launched into the proposal's petition signatures. Lawmakers also mounted a competing ballot issue aimed at nullifying it if passed.

Campaign director Ian James assured supporters at a downtown Columbus gathering that the fight was not over, calling Tuesday's defeat "a bump in the road."

Concerns about possibly creating what was dubbed "a marijuana monopoly" appeared to be the major factor in its defeat, and a leading voice in the mainstream legalization movement said that sent an important national message.

Economists more likely would have considered the growing site setup an oligopoly, a not-so-voter-friendly word.