Measure 80, which would legalize marijuana for adults over the age of 21 in the state of Oregon, is currently trailing by four point according to a new SurveyUSA poll of likely voters. The poll found 37 percent plan to vote for the measure, 41 percent plan to vote against it and 22 percent are undecided.

Oregon
SurveyUSA (9/10-13)
On Measure 80, which would allow adults to grow and possess marijuana, and allow state-licensed stores to grow and sell marijuana to adults, are you …? Certain to vote yes? Certain to vote no? Or not certain?
37% Yes
41% No
22% Not Certain

According to the poll the measure is supported by voters under the age of 35 but its problem is that it is even more strongly opposed by older voters. Only 22 percent of senior citizens plan to vote to legalize marijuana while 53 percent plan to vote against it. Older Americans tend to turnout to vote in high percentages than younger Americans.

An initiative trailing by any amount at this point in the election is bad news. Turning around a deficit in the polling is never easy, but the small silver lining for the campaign is that the poll found a very large number of voters are still undecided. According to SurveyUSA almost a quarter of the electorate has not yet formed an opinion about the initiative. Measure 80 could theoretically still win but if the campaign was able to persuade a large number of the undecided voters it is the right move for the state.