Thousands of youth turned up at the Vancouver Art Gallery today to celebrate '420' -- an annual celebration of cannabis culture and a day to protest for the legalization of marijuana in cities across Canada and the United states.

Hundreds of students from the University of British Columbia also took advantage of the mass student gathering to mobilize the youth vote for May 2.

420 rally

With the federal election less than two weeks away, this year's 420 celebrations are somewhat different across Canada, taking on a more resolute political tone than they have in the past.

At 420 rallies, the message that many youth are trying to get across is to vote Prime Minister Harper out of Parliament.

"Canada used to be very tolerant, progressive, people looked to us as a model of what we could do with drug policies, but Harper wants to reverse that," said Jodie Emery, wife of imprisoned marijuana activist Marc Emery, at the Vancouver Art Gallery where thousands of young marijuana smokers gathered Wednesday.

Youth vote

Hundreds of students at the University of British Columbia also took advantage of the mass student gathering to mobilize the youth vote for May 2.

They formed a vote mob -- a popular new strategy that has become viral across university campuses -- to increase youth voter turnout.

"Last time the turnout was only 37 per cent, which was half of what older age ranges were, so I think it's really important we get out to exercise our right to vote," said Tamara Mackay-Temesy, a UBC student.

Unlike at the 420 rally, these students are non-partisan, making sure students know it doesn't matter who they vote for, as long as they vote.

Students are also concerned that most politicians don't care about the issues that affect them.

"Things like tuition, student loans, the economy, whether they'll get a job when they graduate, high cost of living, the environment," said Mary Leong, who organized the vote mob at UBC.

420 and vote mob organizers alike hope that when the smoke clears, youth will remember to not only vote, but to really think about who they are voting for.