Phil Knight on the sidelines watching the Oregon Ducks take on the USC Trojans.

Oregon’s richest man doesn’t always donate to 2012 Oregon Attorney General candidates, but when he does, he prefers donating to Ellen Rosenblum.  The Oregon Attorney General race in the Democratic Primary seemed to be languishing un-noticed by the local mainstream media until cannabis activists started exposing the differences between Ellen Rosenblum and Dwight Holton regarding cannabis laws.  Now, the Oregonian and other media outlets are extensively covering the race, and Ms. Rosenblum just snagged herself her biggest contributor to date from the Oregonian with the biggest pockets, Nike founder Phil Knight.

Unfortunately, Ms. Rosenblum still lags behind Mr. Holton in total funds raised, but the gap is certainly closing.  According to Oregon election records, Holton had raised $437,249 as of April 14th . Comparatively, Mr. Knight’s contribution will raise Ms. Rosenblum’s total to $375,399.

Cannabis activists are overwhelmingly favoring Ellen Rosenblum – a candidate who has stated that she “will make marijuana enforcement a low priority, and protect the rights of medical marijuana patients.” Conversely, Dwight Holton has a proven anti-cannabis record. He not only helped lead a federal crackdown of Oregon medical marijuana providers but has also called the voter-approved medical marijuana law, “a train wreck.”

It is not known if cannabis law played a part in Mr. Knight’s decision to donate to Ellen Rosenblum.  However, Mr. Knight is a huge financial backer of the University of Oregon, whose Rose Bowl Champion football team was recently profiled by ESPN as being comprised of plenty of cannabis connoisseurs.

In the Oregonian, Ronsenblum staffer Cynara Lilly stated, “I think this relates to the Oregon experience that Ellen has been talking about.  That resonates with people.”

Ellen Rosenblum’s better position on cannabis laws certainly has resonated with Oregon’s cannabis reform community.  Irrespective of whether Mr. Knight’s support for Rosenblum derives from her positions on cannabis or not, we are glad to have him on board.

Please donate to our campaign if you would like to assist our efforts in helping Ms. Rosenblum win this important race.  Or, if you prefer, you can donate directly to the Rosenblum campaign.  While you may not be the richest person in Oregon, every penny counts in this race, and in the campaign to end cannabis prohibition.