A Liberal Party of Canada poster on a Carleton University bulletin board. iPolitics/Michelle Zilio.

In its latest attempt to reach out to young voters, the Liberal Party of Canada’s push to legalize marijuana is now appearing on university bulletin boards in Ottawa.

Liberal Party of Canada posters found at Carleton University promote the party’s intentions to legalize marijuana, reading “GROW THE ECONOMY,” with a marijuana leaf superimposed on the party’s signature red and white lettering. The poster also cites a statistic that two thirds of Canadians want to legalize or decriminalize marijuana.

“Are you the 66%? 66% of Canadians want to either legalize or decriminalize marijuana. We happen to think that’s a great idea,” reads the poster.

According to the Liberal party’s Communications Manager Andrée-Lyne Hallé, the statistics came from a Forum Research poll from January 2012. The poll found that a majority of Canadians – 66 per cent – support legalization or decriminalization of marijuana. According to the poll, 40 per cent of Canadians support legalization and taxation of marijuana, while 26 per cent support the decriminalization of small amounts of pot.

Under the current Canadian law, it is illegal to produce, possess and traffic marijuana. However, it is not a criminal offence to smoke it, according to a memo from University of Ottawa law professor Amir Attaran obtained by the Huffington Post.

The poster goes on to read: “The Liberal Party of Canada wants to treat Canadians like adults. Prohibition has failed, let’s create a smarter way.” It also includes a QR code which, once scanned with a smartphone, leads to a “Join the Party” webpage. Users are encouraged to join the Liberals for $10 a year and enter their contact and demographic information.

Hallé said the posters were provided by the Young Liberals of Canada last year in an effort to “engage youth in a conversation about the legalization of marijuana.” She said the Young Liberals of Canada campus clubs are responsible for how the posters are used.

The poster campaign comes one month after Liberal leader Justin Trudeau admitted to smoking marijuana since becoming an MP. In an interview with the Huffington Post, Trudeau said he smoked marijuana about three years ago during a dinner party at his house in Montreal with a group of friends. During the interview, Trudeau proposed the legalization of pot because it would regulate the substance and keep it away from children.

Trudeau’s comments sparked a series of marijuana confessions from other key Canadian political figures, including NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter and Toronto Mayor Rob Ford.

However, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he has never smoked pot, as he suffers from asthma and can’t smoke anything. Even before Trudeau’s confession, the Conservative party used the Liberal leader’s “reckless” proposal as a platform for fundraising. In an email to party members late July, the party asked supporters to “stand up against Justin Trudeau’s plan to bring more illegal drugs into our communities” and “Chip in $5 or more today and tell us you’re with us.”

While the Conservatives and Liberals have used their position on marijuana as a basis for email and poster campaigns, the NDP has not.

“We talk to the public and our supporters about their priorities, like jobs, the environment, healthcare, ethics in government … Pot’s not on that list,” said NDP Caucus Press Secretary Kiavash Najafi in an email to iPolitics.

The NDP supports decriminalization, which would allow for the possession of a small amount of pot. Najafi highlighted that, unlike Trudeau, the NDP voted against Harper’s mandatory minimum sentences for possession of marijuana. Trudeau has been criticized for his flip-flop stance on marijuana, as he voted in favour of Harper’s mandatory minimum sentences for marijuana possession in 2009 during his early days as an MP.

Lately, the pot talk stretches far beyond Canadian borders. Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize recreational marijuana in July, while medical marijuana was legalized in Massachusetts. Uruguay will become the first country to legalize the possession and sale of marijuana soon, following a decision by its lawmakers in August to pass legislation.

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