Florida Polls Disagree on Cannabis Legalization Vote’s Chances

Two different polls in Florida are in disagreement regarding the fate of Amendment 3, the state’s cannabis legalization amendment that is set to appear before voters this November. If approved, Amendment 3 would add the legalization of adult-use cannabis to the state’s Constitution and would allow current medical cannabis dispensaries to sell adult-use products.

One poll by Florida Atlantic University found a 56% majority of registered voters said they plan to vote yes on the initiative to legalize adult-use cannabis. Because the initiative calls for a constitutional amendment, however, the measure requires at least 60% support to pass. Meanwhile, 29% of voters said they would vote no on the measure, with 15% undecided. The poll was held from August 10-11 and sampled 1,055 registered Florida voters with a +/- 3% margin of error.

However, another poll conducted from August 7-11 by 7News and Suffolk University found that 63% of voters responded “yes” to the question “Should recreational marijuana be legalized?” The survey questioned 500 likely Florida general election voters in both English and Spanish with a +/- 4.4% margin of error, according to the pollsters.

“The marijuana questions has wide support across all demographics,” David Paleologos, director of Suffolk University Political Research Center, said in the report.

Of the two polls, the 7News/Suffolk University poll is more in line with other recent poll results:

• A poll last month found that 64% of voters supported the reforms.
• Some weeks before that, another poll found 64% voter support for the reforms.
• A FOX News poll in June found that 66% of voters said they would vote yes on the legalization amendment.

However, another poll from even earlier this year — published in April — found voter support lacking for the reforms at just 49% in favor.