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A Florida ballot measure to legalize recreational marijuana does not have enough support to pass in November, according to the results of a recent poll. Florida voters will decide on Amendment 3, a constitutional initiative to legalize marijuana and regulate recreational weed sales, in this fall’s general election after the state Supreme Court cleared the way for it to appear on the ballot late last month.
Under Florida state law, ballot initiatives must receive at least 60% of the votes to pass, a threshold far higher than the simple majority required in most states with an initiative process. A recent USA TODAY/Ipsos poll, however, shows that Amendment 3 has the support of only 49% of the state’s adult residents. More than a third (36%) of those surveyed said that they would vote against the marijuana legalization bid, 14% said they were unsure or not registered to vote and 1% declined to answer the question.
The poll of 1,000 Florida adults was conducted between April 5 and April 7. The survey respondents included 369 Republicans, 264 Democrats and 316 independents, and the poll had a reported margin of error of 4.1%.
Support For Amendment 3 Varies By Political Affiliation
Democrats showed the strongest support for Amendment 3, with 64% saying in the poll that they would vote for the initiative and a quarter (24%) saying they were opposed to legalizing marijuana in Florida. Among independents, just over half (52%) said they would vote for the measure, while 33% said they would vote “no.” Support for Amendment 3 was weakest among Republicans, with 38% in favor of the measure and 58% opposed.
After the Florida Supreme Court ruled that Amendment 3 could appear on the ballot, supporters of the measure were quick to begin the general election campaign. Matthew Schweich, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, said the Florida initiative “is one of the most important cannabis legalization campaigns in recent years.”
Schweich, who has served as campaign director for six successful cannabis reform ballot initiative campaigns since 2016, acknowledged in a statement from the cannabis policy reform advocacy group that achieving the super-majority of votes needed for success will not be an easy feat.
“The challenge in Florida is reaching the 60% mark,” said Schweich. “We need a well-funded campaign but just as importantly we need a strong grassroots operation that can mobilize support and turn out pro-legalization voters.”
Florida’s Amendment 3 Legalizes Weed For Adults
More than one million voters signed petitions to place the Amendment 3 on the ballot for the 2024 general election. If passed, the constitutional amendment initiative would allow the state’s current providers of medical marijuana, which was legalized in Florida in 2016, to begin selling cannabis to all adults aged 21 and up. Adults would be allowed to purchase up to three ounces of marijuana at a time, including no more than five grams of cannabis concentrates. The bill does not include provisions to expunge past cannabis convictions or the home cultivation of marijuana, which activists feared would lead the Supreme Court to block the measure based on state laws that limit ballot initiatives to a single subject.
The proposed constitutional amendment also allows state lawmakers to authorize additional adult-use cannabis business licenses, although there is no requirement for the legislature to do so. The initiative retains Florida’s current vertically integrated business structure, which requires operators to control the production and marketing of marijuana from seed to sale.
Earlier polls show stronger support for ending the prohibition of recreational marijuana in Florida. A poll from the University of North Florida released late last year shows that 67% of voters support legalizing recreational marijuana in the state.
If Amendment 3 is approved by Florida voters in the November general election, it will take effect six months after election day, adding the state to the list of states that have legalized recreational marijuana.
