Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
Attention politicians who oppose medical marijuana: Florida voters supported the issue more than they supported most of you in November.
The medical-marijuana group Florida for Care wanted to drive that message home on Tuesday by releasing an analysis showing the breadth of popularity for the state constitutional amendment, which passed Nov. 8 with 71.3 percent of the vote.
The amendment received 6.5 million votes - more than President-elect Donald Trump (4.6 million votes) or U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (4.8 million votes). And it garnered more votes than many of those running for the Florida Legislature.
"In many cases medical marijuana is more popular than politicians are in their own districts," said Ben Pollara, Florida for Care's executive director. "But more than that, medical marijuana is extremely popular overall. It's broadly popular in metro areas, in urban areas, in Democratic areas, in Republican areas. It's a parochial concern as well as an issue of a statewide concern."
After its proposal fell just a few percentage points shy of passing in 2014, Florida for Care not only wants to boast about its amendment's success this year - it wants an often-recalcitrant Legislature to realize how popular the issue is so that lawmakers implement the amendment without erecting too many bureaucratic hurdles.
State lawmakers have had a history of thumbing their noses at voter-approved constitutional amendments and, for years, blocked medical-marijuana proposals before taking them up and turning them into red-tape nightmares.
The medical-marijuana amendment approved last month doesn't require legislative action, but it doesn't prohibit legislators from passing laws to implement it. A Florida Senate committee next week will hold a workshop next week to review the issue.
"The breadth and consistency of these numbers across disparate and diverse parts of the state truly shows the mandate voters gave this law," said Sean Phillippi, consultant with TLE Analytics, which conducted the study.
Despite medical marijuana's popularity in Florida and in other states, some worry that Trump's choice for U.S. Attorney General, Alabama U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, will use the power of the federal government to undermine the voter-approved laws. About half of all Americans now have access to cannabis recommended by a physician.
The initiative cleared the 60 percent vote threshold for constitutional amendments in each of Florida's 27 congressional districts and in all 40 Florida Senate seats. Of the 120 Florida House districts, it cleared the 60 percent threshold in all but two, 110 and 111 in Miami-Dade County. And it got more than 6 in 10 votes in 63 of the state's 67 counties.
Florida for Care was bipartisan in singling out the pols who got less support than than medical marijuana.
Republicans included Trump, Florida House Speaker Richard Corcoran, Florida Senate President Joe Negron, state Sen. Dana Young, state Rep. Travis Cummings and anti-drug crusader Mel Sembler. Young and Cummings chair the legislative health committees that could turn the just-passed amendment into statute.
Fewer Democrats were highlighted, in part because Democrats heavily favor medical marijuana and they're in the minority when it comes to the state's legislative and congressional delegation. Still, state Sen. Darryl Rouson and former national party chair and U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz were called out for their prior opposition.
Wasserman Schultz in 2015 was embroiled in a brutal war of words with the initiative's founder and chief funder, Orlando trial lawyer John Morgan.
In Florida's 23rd Congressional District, represented by Wasserman Schultz, voters passed the amendment by 50 percentage points, 75-25 percent. Her district is tied for the 2nd highest percentage vote for medical marijuana.
Other highlights from the report:
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Florida Voters Like Medical Marijuana More Than They Support Their Politicians, Analysis Shows
Author: Marc Caputo
Contact: 703.647.7999
Photo Credit: Rich Pedroncelli
Website: Politico
The medical-marijuana group Florida for Care wanted to drive that message home on Tuesday by releasing an analysis showing the breadth of popularity for the state constitutional amendment, which passed Nov. 8 with 71.3 percent of the vote.
The amendment received 6.5 million votes - more than President-elect Donald Trump (4.6 million votes) or U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (4.8 million votes). And it garnered more votes than many of those running for the Florida Legislature.
"In many cases medical marijuana is more popular than politicians are in their own districts," said Ben Pollara, Florida for Care's executive director. "But more than that, medical marijuana is extremely popular overall. It's broadly popular in metro areas, in urban areas, in Democratic areas, in Republican areas. It's a parochial concern as well as an issue of a statewide concern."
After its proposal fell just a few percentage points shy of passing in 2014, Florida for Care not only wants to boast about its amendment's success this year - it wants an often-recalcitrant Legislature to realize how popular the issue is so that lawmakers implement the amendment without erecting too many bureaucratic hurdles.
State lawmakers have had a history of thumbing their noses at voter-approved constitutional amendments and, for years, blocked medical-marijuana proposals before taking them up and turning them into red-tape nightmares.
The medical-marijuana amendment approved last month doesn't require legislative action, but it doesn't prohibit legislators from passing laws to implement it. A Florida Senate committee next week will hold a workshop next week to review the issue.
"The breadth and consistency of these numbers across disparate and diverse parts of the state truly shows the mandate voters gave this law," said Sean Phillippi, consultant with TLE Analytics, which conducted the study.
Despite medical marijuana's popularity in Florida and in other states, some worry that Trump's choice for U.S. Attorney General, Alabama U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, will use the power of the federal government to undermine the voter-approved laws. About half of all Americans now have access to cannabis recommended by a physician.
The initiative cleared the 60 percent vote threshold for constitutional amendments in each of Florida's 27 congressional districts and in all 40 Florida Senate seats. Of the 120 Florida House districts, it cleared the 60 percent threshold in all but two, 110 and 111 in Miami-Dade County. And it got more than 6 in 10 votes in 63 of the state's 67 counties.
Florida for Care was bipartisan in singling out the pols who got less support than than medical marijuana.
Republicans included Trump, Florida House Speaker Richard Corcoran, Florida Senate President Joe Negron, state Sen. Dana Young, state Rep. Travis Cummings and anti-drug crusader Mel Sembler. Young and Cummings chair the legislative health committees that could turn the just-passed amendment into statute.
Fewer Democrats were highlighted, in part because Democrats heavily favor medical marijuana and they're in the minority when it comes to the state's legislative and congressional delegation. Still, state Sen. Darryl Rouson and former national party chair and U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz were called out for their prior opposition.
Wasserman Schultz in 2015 was embroiled in a brutal war of words with the initiative's founder and chief funder, Orlando trial lawyer John Morgan.
In Florida's 23rd Congressional District, represented by Wasserman Schultz, voters passed the amendment by 50 percentage points, 75-25 percent. Her district is tied for the 2nd highest percentage vote for medical marijuana.
Other highlights from the report:
- Rouson's district had the highest level of medical-marijuana support - 78.47 percent - than any Florida Senate seat. Rouson received 66.9 percent of the vote in November in Florida Senate District 19.
- In Negron's district, 71.4 percent voted for the amendment and 70.6 percent voted for it in Corcoran's district. Negron received 64.8 percent support in Florida Senate District 25 against an outgunned, little-known opponent. Corcoran ran unopposed.
- In Young's Florida Senate District 18, which she carried with 48 percent of the vote, the amendment passed with 72 percent support. Cummings was the only lawmaker of the group who received a higher vote percent (82 percent) than the amendment (71 percent).
- Florida for Care singled out Sembler, who led both campaigns against medical marijuana, by looking at the support for the amendment in the state House, state Senate and congressional districts where he lives. Sembler lives in Rouson's district, which supported the amendment more than any other Florida Senate seat. In House District 68, support hit 77.8 percent and was ninth highest of any House seat. Florida Congressional District 13 hit 75.9 percent support and was second highest of any congressional district.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Florida Voters Like Medical Marijuana More Than They Support Their Politicians, Analysis Shows
Author: Marc Caputo
Contact: 703.647.7999
Photo Credit: Rich Pedroncelli
Website: Politico
