The Associated Press article Houston — Texas voters in an election season that has seen two marijuana initiatives and a wave of legalization initiatives in the state will consider legalizing the recreational use of marijuana for people over 21.

A new survey from the Harris Pollster firm found that 43 percent of Texans think marijuana should be legal, while 29 percent say it should not be legal.

A whopping 70 percent of Republicans support it.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is among those who say the election season is a referendum on marijuana laws.

He’s backing the measure because he said it would help the state’s economy.

Paxton, who faces Republican state Sen. Dan Patrick in the November election, said he’s confident the ballot measure will pass.

“I know that it’s going to pass, and I know it will pass,” he said in an interview with The Associated Media.

“The fact that the people are coming out in numbers and it’s getting close, I’m confident that it will be passed.”

Texas already has a marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot.

The measure would allow people 21 and older to possess up to one ounce of marijuana and grow up to six marijuana plants in their homes, as well as a medical marijuana dispensary.

The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research released a poll Tuesday on Texas’ marijuana legalization and pollsters say the race is tightening.

Polls taken by Harris Pollsters, a firm that tracks state elections, show Paxton leading Patrick 46 to 38 percent among likely voters.

The margin is wide enough that Patrick can win the state outright if he wins by about 10 percentage points, the pollsters said.

Pollsters say they have a more favorable opinion of Patrick than Paxton.

Patrick is viewed favorably by 56 percent of likely voters, while only 32 percent have an unfavorable opinion of the attorney general, the survey showed.

Patrick has the support of a wide swath of the GOP-leaning Republican base in Texas.

His party’s support could be crucial to his campaign because the Republican National Committee is trying to help him win in November.

Patrick has held onto the support in recent weeks from many Republican leaders in the Texas GOP.

The Harris Polls poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.