Peter B. Lewis, the Cleveland insurance tycoon and philanthropist, contributed $340,000 last fall to bankroll a political fund started by a group working to legalize and regulate marijuana use.

Lewis, the chairman of Progressive Corp., is the only contributor so far to the fund launched last September by the Washington-based Marijuana Policy Project, said Krissy Oechslin, a spokeswoman for the group. Oechslin said Lewis also provided about half of the group’s operating budget of about $1.8 million last year.

The goal of the new fund is to defeat certain members of Congress who oppose liberalization of marijuana laws, Oechslin said
Source: www.cleveland.com/news.