Trump’s Endorsement Of Florida Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure Failed To Convince His Supporters, Poll Shows

Former President Donald Trump’s endorsement of a Florida marijuana legalization ballot initiative evidently failed to convince his voters to get on board, according to new poll showing that a vast majority of opposition to legalizing cannabis in the Sunshine State came from Trump supporters.

The survey from the Associated Press and NORC that was released last week offers comprehensive insights into voters’ opinions nationwide in the week leading up to the vote and on Election Day, which saw Trump win his reelection campaign at the same time that three states defeated adult-use legalization proposals at the ballot.

One of the questions put to respondents was whether or not they support ending cannabis prohibition, with results broken down by state and voters’ choice in the presidential race between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.

The findings from Florida were especially notable, as Trump made headlines for coming out in favor of the legalization measure known as Amendment 3, which ultimately failed to reach a challenging 60 percent threshold for passage under state law, even though it still received a majority of the statewide vote. The president-elect had predicted incorrectly that it would become law.

Trump’s base didn’t seem to fall in line with his stance on the issue. The AP poll found that 57 percent of Florida voters said they back legalization—which is largely in line with the 56 percent who voted “yes” on Amendment 3, according to election results. Another 42 percent of Floridians said they’re against the reform.

Among legalization opponents, 71 percent identified as Trump supporters, while backers of the reform included 43 percent who said they voted for Trump.

In contrast, 55 percent of those who voiced support for legalization said they were supporting Harris, while Harris backers made up 29 percent of the opposition to legalization.

Nationally in the AP poll, 62 percent of the 32,499 respondents said they support ending prohibition, while 37 percent said that they’re against the policy change.

Among cannabis legalization supporters,  59 percent backed Harris and 39 percent voted for Trump. When it comes to legalization opponents, 66 percent favored Trump and 32 percent supported Harris.

For Florida, the results of the poll—which involved interviews with 1,174 voters in the state from October 28 to November 5—indicate that Trump’s pro-legalization messaging did not meaningfully move the needle for his supporters. Or, at least, it didn’t move it far enough to overcome the opposition and reach a steep electoral threshold for passage.

Several polls predicted a different outcome, but the final vote wasn’t entirely a surprise looking at the full breadth of surveys and taking into account margins of error.

Major cannabis companies and individual donors had collectively contributed more than $150 million to get legalization enacted into law in the Sunshine State. The multi-state cannabis operator Trulieve provided the lion’s share of financing for the campaign. The defeat was felt strongly among industry investors in the election aftermath, too.

On the other side of the issue, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) aggressively campaigned against Amendment 3, telling voters the measure was written by self-interested marijuana companies in an effort to corner the market. Part of his rationale was the fact that there was not an explicit home grow option for adults, even though he has not personally advocated for the legislature to enact that reform.

DeSantis also repeatedly made the case that, as written, the measure would have upended Florida’s culture and turned it into something closer to California, Colorado or New York. The smell of cannabis smoke would pollute Florida’s air, he suggested on multiple occasions.

The governor also faced allegations of weaponizing state departments to push anti-legalization narratives through various PSAs in recent weeks—prompting one Democratic state senator to sue over what he claimed was an unconstitutional appropriation of tax dollars. A Florida judge later dismissed that lawsuit due to what he claimed to be a lack of standing and claim of injury.

Meanwhile, other state-specific polling also provided insights into voter preferences on cannabis heading into the 2025 session that could be instructive for lawmakers.

For example, in Pennsylvania, where the issue of legalization has again returned as a key legislative topic, 58 percent of voters said they favor the policy change, compared to 41 who are opposed. Sixty-one percent of Harris supporters who among those who said they backed the reform, while just 38 percent of Trump supporters said the same.

Support for marijuana legalization did reach a plurality in North Dakota (49 percent) and South Dakota (49 percent). But similar to the votes on the policy in both states, it didn’t reach majority support. By contrast, 55 percent of Nebraska voters said that they back legalization, which squares with the vote to approve a pair of medical cannabis initiatives at the ballot last week.

On the national stage, the question for advocates and stakeholders is what it means to have Trump retake the Oval Office. Beyond the Florida initiative, the president-elect also voiced support for certain federal reforms, including cannabis industry banking access and rescheduling.

Whether that stated support will translate into action on reform legislation after Trump takes office in January is uncertain. Republicans have reclaimed a majority in the Senate, and the political composition of the House is still to be determined. The president’s power to unilaterally change federal marijuana laws is limited, and GOP congressional lawmakers have historically resisted cannabis reform.

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Photo courtesy of Wikimedia.