Politics
9 In 10 Florida Voters Say They Should Get To Decide On Marijuana Legalization, Trump-Affiliated Pollster Finds
Nearly 9 in 10 Florida voters say they should have the right to decide to legalize marijuana in the state, a new poll from a Trump-affiliated research firm shows as the fate of a 2026 reform initiative remains murky amid pending litigation.
In a memo about the poll commissioned by the cannabis legalization campaign Safe & Smart Florida last week, the polling firm Fabrizio, Lee & Associates said it found that 89 percent of Florida likely voters “believe they should have the right to vote on this issue,” while just 10 percent said they shouldn’t.
“By party, Democrats believe their voices should be heard by an 89-point margin (94/5), Independents by 88-points (93/5), and Republicans by 69-points (84/15),” the memo, obtained by Marijuana Moment, says.
“Likely voters overwhelmingly believe their voices should be heard when deciding if Adult Personal Use of Marijuana should be legalized in Florida,” the firm said, adding that 92 percent of respondents broadly feel that voters, rather than politicians, should be empowered to decide on proposed constitutional amendments in the state.
“Elected officials trying to move the goalposts on this amendment are acting contrary to the will of the electorate,” the memo said. “Florida voters want to be the final voice in deciding whether to legalize adult personal use of marijuana.”
The survey—which involved interviews with 800 likely 2026 Florida voters from November 2-4—didn’t ask respondents whether they personally supported the legalization proposal that may appear on next year’s ballot. So while nearly 90 percent feel voters should make that choice, the results aren’t indicative of how they might vote on the issue come Election Day.
An earlier survey from the same firm separately conducted a nationally representative survey of registered voters that showed a majority of Republicans back a variety of cannabis reforms, including rescheduling, states’ rights to legalize and marijuana industry access to banking services and stock exchanges.
Back in Florida, Smart & Safe Florida recently filed a lawsuit with the state Supreme Court, alleging that officials are violating election laws by stalling a required review process for the measure without justification.
With 662,543 signatures verified by the secretary of state’s office so far, that’s more than triple the 220,016 required to prompt the review. The campaign reached that initial threshold over the summer and notified state officials, but it says it received no response.
Attorneys for the campaign also noted that Smart & Safe Florida is involved in other litigation related to allegations that the state is taking “unlawful” steps to force the invalidation of about 200,000 voter signatures it has submitted. Officials claim the signatures are void because the petitions voters signed didn’t include the full text of the initiative.
This is the campaign’s second run at the ballot. They successfully secured ballot placement for a 2024 version of the initiative–and a majority did vote to pass it, but not enough to meet the state’s steep 60 percent threshold to approve a constitutional amendment.
In the background of this lawsuit, a federal judge in August delivered a win to Smart & Safe Florida—granting “complete relief” from provisions of a law the governor signed to impose other serious restrictions on signature gathering.
While the law Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed in May wasn’t directly targeted at the cannabis initiative, there’s been concern among supporters that it could jeopardize an already complex and costly process to collect enough signatures to make the ballot. That’s because it would block non-residents and non-citizens from collecting signatures for ballot measures.
In March, meanwhile, two Democratic members of Congress representing Florida asked the federal government to investigate what they described as “potentially unlawful diversion” of millions in state Medicaid funds via a group with ties to DeSantis. The money was used to fight against a citizen ballot initiative, vehemently opposed by the governor, that would have legalized marijuana for adults.
The lawmakers’ letter followed allegations that a $10 million donation from a state legal settlement was improperly made to the Hope Florida Foundation, which later sent the money to two political nonprofits, which in turn sent $8.5 million to a campaign opposing Amendment 3.
The governor said in February that the newest marijuana legalization measure is in “big time trouble” with the state Supreme Court, predicting it will be blocked from going before voters next year.
“There’s a lot of different perspectives on on marijuana,” DeSantis said. “It should not be in our Constitution. If you feel strongly about it, you have elections for the legislature. Go back candidates that you believe will be able to deliver what your vision is on that.”
“But when you put these things in the Constitution—and I think, I mean, the way they wrote, there’s all kinds of things going on in here. I think it’s going to have big time trouble getting through the Florida Supreme Court,” he said.
The latest initiative was filed with the secretary of state’s office just months after the initial version failed during the November 2024 election—despite an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Smart & Safe Florida is hoping the revised version will succeed in 2026. The campaign—which in the last election cycle received tens of millions of dollars from cannabis industry stakeholders, principally the multi-state operator Trulieve—incorporated certain changes into the new version that seem responsive to criticism opponents raised during the 2024 push.
For example, it now specifically states that the “smoking and vaping of marijuana in any public place is prohibited.”Another section asserts that the legislature would need to approve rules dealing with the “regulation of the time, place, and manner of the public consumption of marijuana.”
Last year, the governor accurately predicted that the 2024 cannabis measure from the campaign would survive a legal challenge from the state attorney general. It’s not entirely clear why he feels this version would face a different outcome.
While there’s uncertainty around how the state’s highest court will navigate the measure, a poll released in February showed overwhelming bipartisan voter support for the reform—with 67 percent of Florida voters backing legalization, including 82 percent of Democrats, 66 percent of independents and 55 percent of Republicans.
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Meanwhile, a pro-legalization GOP state lawmaker recently filed a bill to amend state law to codify that the public use of marijuana is prohibited.
Rep. Alex Andrade (R), the sponsor, said earlier this year that embracing cannabis reform is a way for the Republican party to secure more votes from young people.
Separately, Florida medical marijuana officials are actively revoking the registrations of patients and caregivers with drug-related criminal records. The policy is part of broad budget legislation signed into law earlier this year by DeSantis. The provisions in question direct the state Department of Health (DOH) to cancel registrations of medical marijuana patients and caregivers if they’re convicted of—or plead guilty or no contest to—criminal drug charges.
Read the polling memo on Florida voters and marijuana legalization below:
