A poll released last week from the University of South Florida and Florida Atlantic University found that 60% of respondents back adult-use cannabis legalization in the state, while 83% backed the state’s current medical cannabis program.
The survey found about 29% of respondents wanted cannabis to remain illegal for adult use in the state with about 11% unsure.
The poll also found that less than half – 45% – of respondents believed medical cannabis “is being abused” (50% disagreed) with 39% saying medical cannabis is too easy to obtain in the state (57% disagreed), and 40% believing there should be “harsh penalties” for sharing medical cannabis (52% disagreed). Another 44% of those surveyed said medical cannabis should be taxed (45% opposed).
In June, the campaign seeking to put an adult-use cannabis question to Florida voters in 2024 surpassed the signature threshold to get the issue on ballots; however, the initiative is being challenged by state Attorney General Ashley Moody over concerns that, if approved, cannabis consumers would face “devastating criminal liability under federal law.” In a brief filed on behalf of Moody last month, Solicitor General Henry Whitaker argued that the ballot summary “misleads in ways that, though sometimes subtle, are likely to influence voters – and to do so in a way that entrenches the sponsor’s monopolistic stranglehold on the marijuana market to the detriment of Floridians.”
The state Supreme Court will ultimately determine whether the ballot initiative covers only a single subject as required under state law, is not confusing to voters, and whether it will allow it on ballots.
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