After Proposition 19′s defeat in 2010, it seemed a foregone conclusion that marijuana legalization would be back on the ballot in 2012. But that is not to be as all the legalization campaigns in the state failed to get the required number of signatures in time to get on this fall’s ballot.

Advocates must now wait for 2014 and another shot at signature-gathering to get legalization on the ballot. Hopefully they have learned lessons that can be added to what went wrong in 2010. Steve Kubby of the Regulate Marijuana Like Wine Act says they got about 200,000 signatures of a needed half-million+ and they are gearing up for 2014, with donors already saying they will have money available.

Many are blaming the federal crackdown in CA for the lack of money available to the legalization campaigns. No doubt the decimation of the medical marijuana industry in the state had a part to play.

But in the end all anyone can really do is live, learn and move forward. Maybe the political climate will be different in 2014, maybe it won’t. Turnout is likely to be less two years from now, but it shouldn’t matter if a well-funded and maintained campaign is ready to launch in time.

- Joe Klare