Washington ( CNN ) -- Will pot politics push Florida Democrat Charlie Crist to victory on his quest to regain the governor 's mansion ? That 's what some Democrats are hoping . Polls show Crist and his GOP rival , current Gov . Rick Scott , are neck-and-neck . A Quinnipiac University survey released Monday has Crist at 42 % , Scott with 41 % , Libertarian candidate Adrian Wyllie with 7 % , and 9 % of likely voters still undecided . Public Policy Polling released Sunday had the Crist and Scott at 44 % each . Crist 's law partner , John Morgan , spent millions to get an amendment to legalize medical marijuana on the ballot on Tuesday -- a move some say was meant to help Crist win by boosting turnout from Democratic-leaning groups . `` Democrats in Florida privately hope that having a medical marijuana initiative on the ballot can bring out a set of voters who are n't otherwise likely to vote in a midterm election , '' said Reid Wilson , a Washington Post reporter who closely follows state politics . `` It 's very political calculation and one that frankly Charlie Crist 's allies have put a lot of money into . '' In a sign of a growing trend , 23 states and the District of Columbia have already legalized medical marijuana . Florida is not the only state where pot is on the ballot this year -- voters in Alaska , Oregon and Washington , D.C. , have a chance on Tuesday to approve measures legalizing recreational use of marijuana , following in the footsteps of pot pioneers Washington and Colorado , where weed has proved to be big business . State records show marijuana sales brought in an average of roughly $ 332,000 a month to Colorado communities in the first eight months of the year . There has been some big money behind the ballot battle in the Sunshine State . According to the Center for Public Integrity , an estimated $ 4.7 million has been spent on television ads supporting both sides of the debate . Most of that money -- $ 3.9 million -- has been spent by opponents of the ballot measure , who are financed in large part by conservative casino magnate Sheldon Adelson . In contrast , after a massive effort to get the measure on the ballot , Morgan and his supporters have spent just $ 828,800 on television ads urging voters to pass the amendment -- a disadvantage that could prove decisive in a race that will come down to the wire . That means it could be anybody 's game . Holder 'cautiously optimistic ' on legal pot . `` The campaign against [ the amendment ] has been pretty aggressive and I think pretty effective based on the polls so there are a lot of people who are now actually kind of mobilizing to vote against medical marijuana initiative , because they think it 's just problematic , too many loopholes , too easy for people to basically be selling marijuana out in the open , '' said Adam Smith , the political editor of the Tampa Bay Times . `` So there 's at least some speculation that rather than driving young people who are inclined to vote for it to the polls , it 's going to motivate people who are against it to turn out which could help Rick Scott . The amendment needs 60 % to pass and while many polls show strong support for the initiative , it is not clear that there is enough to pass it -- a sign that Democrats ' high hopes the ballot measure could sway the race for their guy could go up in smoke . Write-in candidate smokes what she says is marijuana in political ad .
Polls show Democrat Charlie Crist and his Republican Rick Scott are neck-and-neck . Scott is the current governor of Florida , Crist is former governor . Comment: It could `` bring out a set of voters ( not ) likely to vote in a midterm election , '' says a reporter .