A statewide poll of Florida has been conducted by news agency Fox in which 66% of participants have indicated support for the legalization of cannabis for adult recreational use. The majority of the 1,000 surveyed indicated support of the constitutional amendment appearing on the 2024 ballot that could legalize cannabis for adults ages 21 and over.
When the results of this study are broken down by political affiliation, 57% of Republicans, 71% of Independents and over 75% of Democratic voters are in favor of the cannabis legalization amendment.
The poll also addressed the hot button topic of abortion access with 69% of respondents voting in favor of establishing the right to abortion in the state of Florida.
Ron DeSantis, Florida’s governor, has expressed disapproval of both amendments.
In March of this year, the Florida Supreme Court ruled in favor of adding the Adult Personal Use of Marijuana amendment to the state’s ballot in the upcoming November 2024 election.
The proposed amendment would allow adults 21 and over the ability to legally “to possess, purchase, or use marijuana products and marijuana accessories for non-medical personal consumption by smoking, ingestion, or otherwise”. It would also allow for registered dispensaries to operate and those who are licensed the ability to “acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute such products and accessories”.
In an advisory statement, Justice Jamie R. Grosshans, a DeSantis appointee, remarked, “a ballot initiative to legalize the recreational use of marijuana under Florida law obtained the required number of signatures to trigger mandatory judicial review of the initiative’s validity. Our role is narrow- we assess only whether the amendment conforms to the constitutionally mandated single-subject requirement, whether the ballot summary meets the statutory standard for clarity, and whether the amendment is facially invalid under the federal constitution. In light of those limited considerations, we approve the proposed amendment for placement on the ballot”.
At least 60% of voters will need to vote in favor of this amendment in the November 2024 election in order for cannabis legalization to be written into law.
