The Associated Press

ST. PAUL — The political upstarts on the Independence Party's ticket are in favor of legalizing marijuana on a much larger scale than Minnesota's just-signed medical cannabis law.

Full legalization is part of the party's platform.

Minnesota Public Radio News reported that marijuana played a role in candidate recruitment. The party's attorney general candidate, Brandan Borgos, has worked as a board member for the marijuana advocacy group Minnesota NORML.

"They wanted, in my opinion, to send a very, very strong message," said Borgos, 32. "With the amount of people in the state who want some form of marijuana reform, they wanted to bring in someone who has a very, very good amount of information behind him, and then an organization, too, that frankly is one of the biggest state chapters of the national organization."

Governor candidate Hannah Nicollet said she thinks too many people are in jail for using marijuana or other drugs.

"Putting nonviolent people in cages is a detriment to society, and giving people a criminal record when it makes it harder to get a job ... doesn't help them," Nicollet said.

John Denney, a 28-year-old law school student running for an open 6th Congressional District seat, said there are benefits to legalization.

"Marijuana is producing a lot of revenue for Colorado right now," Denney said. "If you want to see more revenue in this state, that's one really strong reason to look at legalizing marijuana."

Tom Horner, IPM's 2010 candidate for governor, has mixed feelings.

"I think it's going to be an issue that probably on the whole is going to be a plus for the Independence Party," Horner said. "But looking long term, I don't think the Independence Party is going to be successful if it is defined too narrowly around any single issue, even one that is as emotional and as volatile as marijuana."