Florida Senate Democrats Endorse Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure

“Amendment 3 will garner more votes from registered voters on Nov. 5 than any candidate, and that’s the bottom line.”

By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix

Members of the Florida Democratic Senate caucus came out formally in support of Amendment 3 on Monday—the constitutional amendment that would legalize recreational use of cannabis in Florida that’s on the Nov. 5 ballot.

“This isn’t strictly a partisan issue,” incoming Senate Democratic Leader Jason Pizzo from South Florida said in kicking off the Zoom press conference.

“Amendment 3 will garner more votes from registered voters on Nov. 5 than any candidate, and that’s the bottom line, and that certainly doesn’t happen just by registered Democratic voters, NPAs, or Republicans alone,” he later added.

Pizzo’s prediction that the measure will draw bipartisan support has been reflected in polls as well as in endorsements – none bigger than from the most consequential Republican in the country, former President Donald J. Trump, who came out and formally backed the measure on Sunday night.

Thank you, @FLSenateDems, for your support of a safer Florida and #YesOn3! pic.twitter.com/Dm8mxn7Dau

— Smart & Safe Florida (@SmartandSafeFl) September 9, 2024

But the proposal is adamantly opposed by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), as well as the Republican Party of Florida and the Florida Sheriffs Association.

The Vote No on 3 campaign released their first television ad this weekend, alleging that the proposal “isn’t the marijuana amendment, it’s the monopoly amendment,” a reference to the fact that Trulieve, the state’s biggest marijuana company, has spent more than $60 million to get the measure over the finish line this fall.

In response, Orange County Democratic Sen.-elect Carlos Guillermo Smith insisted there is nothing in Amendment 3’s language that would preclude the Legislature from removing the state’s “vertical integration” of the cannabis industry, which requires that a company must control every aspect of its cannabis operations.

He said it would be preferable if companies could compete for just one part of the business operation, such as distribution, retail, or cultivation. Despite legal and legislative challenges, the vertical integration requirement continues to exist.

This story was first published by Florida Phoenix.

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DeSantis Continues To Push Against Florida Marijuana Legalization Initiative Despite Trump’s Support And New Polling

As a new poll again shows majority support for a Florida marijuana legalization ballot initiative—and the campaign behind the measure rolls out a new ad featuring a law enforcement official endorsing the proposal—Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is continuing to beat the drum in opposition to the reform.

The latest survey from the Florida Chamber of Commerce, which is against the cannabis initiative, found that 59 percent of likely voters in the state back Amendment 3. That’d put it just short of the required 60 percent threshold to pass a constitutional amendment at the ballot under state law, however.

“The lack of movement in support from Floridians over the past year comes despite more than $75 million being raised to promote this amendment, over $70 million of which has come from Florida’s largest medicinal marijuana provider [Trulieve],” the chamber said. “This failure to build momentum for the amendment displays that the concerns about Amendment 3 raised by Governor DeSantis and others are resonating with many Floridians.”

The organization didn’t release the specific questions voters were asked in the survey, which involved interviews with 600 likely voters from August 15-26 and has a +/-4 percentage point margin of error. But other recent polling signals that the measure does have enough support to reach the 60 percent threshold, including one from the James Madison Institute (JMI) that was released late last month showing 64 percent of likely voters in Florida are in favor of the legalization proposal.

Despite spending $9M on TV ads, support for Amendment 3 is dropping. The corporate weed giant Trulieve has poured $70M into pushing this corporate greed scheme, but Floridians aren't buying it. No matter how much they spin it, Amendment 3 is all about profits, not people.… pic.twitter.com/Kgxuc1r1RI

— Vote No on 3 (@VoteNo_On3) August 30, 2024

Despite those numbers—as well as former President Donald Trump’s newly announced tacit support for Amendment 3—Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has not relented in his efforts to convince voters to vote against the measure.

On Monday, the governor responded to a tweet from Florida Sen. Jonathan Martin (R), who voiced concerns about the initiative language, arguing that it would only allow for restrictions on public smoking of medical, versus recreational, marijuana.

“Sen. Martin is correct. His observation is clear in the text of the actual amendment (which is not included on the ballot and which 99% of voters will never read),” DeSantis said. “Florida’s constitution, if amendment 3 passes, will provide for regulating the use of *medical* marijuana in public, but not *recreational* marijuana.”

Sen. Martin is correct.

His observation is clear in the text of the actual amendment (which is not included on the ballot and which 99% of voters will never read).

Florida’s constitution, if amendment 3 passes, will provide for regulating the use of *medical* marijuana in… https://t.co/bnp5W2iamo

— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) September 2, 2024

Trump similarly talked about his own concerns with public cannabis consumption, though he predicted the measure would pass, saying, “Whether people like it or not, this will happen through the approval of the Voters, so it should be done correctly.”

“We need the State Legislature to responsibly create laws that prohibit the use of it in public spaces, so we do not smell marijuana everywhere we go, like we do in many of the Democrat run Cities,” he added. “At the same time, someone should not be a criminal in Florida, when this is legal in so many other States. We do not need to ruin lives & waste Taxpayer Dollars arresting adults with personal amounts of it on them, and no one should grieve a loved one because they died from fentanyl laced marijuana.”

The campaign Smart & Safe Florida has strongly contested claims that the proposed policy change would tie the hands of lawmakers to set regulations for adult-use cannabis, including public consumption restrictions.

“Don’t let the prohibitionists scare you. With #YesOn3, the Legislature has EVERY right to enact public consumption laws. Just like they already do with alcohol and tobacco,” they said.

Don't let the prohibitionists scare you. With #YesOn3, the Legislature has EVERY right to enact public consumption laws. Just like they already do with alcohol and tobacco. pic.twitter.com/L4FacFUHU5

— Smart & Safe Florida (@SmartandSafeFl) September 3, 2024

The campaign also launched a site in an effort to clear up misconceptions about the reform measure.

ICYMI – We’ve launched a new website to clear the air on Amendment 3 and give you the FACTS! Click here to learn more: https://t.co/IABykCHad6pic.twitter.com/hej9ZFUWCf

— Smart & Safe Florida (@SmartandSafeFl) September 2, 2024

Trump’s recent comments followed meetings with a GOP Florida senator and the CEO of the primary financial backer of the initiative, Trulieve’s Kim Rivers, Marijuana Moment learned.

In more recent comments published on Tuesday, Trump said medical marijuana has been “absolutely amazing” for patients, and that the Florida legalization initiative is “going to be very good” for the state after it passes, which he expects to happen.

Amid these developments, the campaign Smart & Safe Florida released an ad this past week featuring a 30-year law enforcement veteran Tim Hightower.

“I’ve spent my life keeping Florida safe for generations we fought a war on drugs and lost,” he said. “On marijuana, it’s time for a new approach.”

“Amendment 3 allows responsible adults to buy safe, regulated, lab-tested marijuana from a store instead of the streets, allowing law enforcement to focus on serious crimes while providing the funding they need,” he said. “It’s time for a change.”

Separately, longtime ally and GOP political operative Roger Stone, who is also a Florida resident and supports the legalization proposal, separately told Marijuana Moment that if Trump did ultimately endorse the measure it would “guarantee victory.”

Meanwhile, following Trump’s recent announcement of support for the cannabis legalization ballot measure in Florida, the campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris started working to remind voters that while in office, Trump “took marijuana reform backwards.”

In an memo from a senior campaign spokesperson, the Harris campaign accused Trump of “brazen flip flops” on cannabis. The Democratic campaign says it’s one of the Republican former president’s “several bewildering ‘policy proposals’ that deserve real scrutiny.”

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), who is sponsoring a bill to federally legalize marijuana called the States Reform Act, separately said that while she hopes Trump will back the Biden administration’s rescheduling move, she also said part of the reason Republicans in Congress have declined to embrace marijuana policy change is because they’re “afraid of it.”

Trump also recently went after Harris over her prosecutorial record on marijuana, claiming that she put “thousands and thousands of Black people in jail” for cannabis offenses—but the full record of her time in office is more nuanced.

Trump’s line of attack, while misleading, was nonetheless notable in the sense that the GOP presidential nominee implied that he disagrees with criminalizing people over marijuana and is moving to leverage the idea that Harris played a role in racially disproportionate mass incarceration.

Meanwhile, Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate, choosing a candidate who backed numerous cannabis reform measures in Congress, called for an end to prohibition when he was running for governor and then signed a comprehensive legalization bill into law in 2023.

As president, Trump largely stayed true to his position that marijuana laws should be handled at the state-level, with no major crackdown on cannabis programs as some feared after then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Obama era federal enforcement guidance. In fact, Trump criticized the top DOJ official and suggested the move should be reversed.

While he was largely silent on the issue of legalization, he did tentatively endorse a bipartisan bill to codify federal policy respecting states’ rights to legalize.

That said, on several occasions he released signing statements on spending legislation stipulating that he reserved the right to ignore a long-standing rider that prohibits the Justice Department from using its funds to interfere with state-legal medical marijuana programs.

Before President Joe Biden bowed out of the race, his campaign made much of the president’s mass cannabis pardons and rescheduling push, drawing a contrast with the Trump administration’s record. The Harris campaign so far has not spoken to that particular issue, and the nominee has yet to publicly discuss marijuana policy issues since her own campaign launched.

—Marijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,500 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.—

Meanwhile, a Democratic congresswoman who recently said she was on the fence about whether she’d vote for the legalization ballot initiative this November has officially given the measure her endorsement.

There’s been a mixed bag of feedback on Amendment 3 from members of Florida’s congressional delegation.

One pro-legalization GOP congressman, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), recently said he intends to vote against it, strictly because he feels the reform should be enacted statutorily, rather than as a constitutional amendment that would prove more challenging to amend.

On the other hand, Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, predicted earlier this year that the measure will pass.

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Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan.

Democratic Congresswoman Endorses Florida Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure After Previously Voicing Mixed Opinions

A Democratic congresswoman who recently said she was on the fence about whether she’d vote for a Florida marijuana legalization ballot initiative this November has officially given the measure her endorsement.

Rep. Lois Frankel (D-FL) said in a press release on Thursday that she’s “taken a closer look at Amendment 3 and will support it.”

“Safe lab-tested marijuana will save lives and put an end to outdated laws that ruin people’s lives for merely possessing or consuming small amounts of marijuana,” she said.

This comes about a week after Frankel told Marijuana Moment at the Democratic National Convention that she wasn’t “really an expert” on the issue and would need to look at the specifics of the initiative before deciding, adding that her primary concern is impaired driving. However, she did concede at the time that the campaign’s ads urging support for the measure have been “very good.”

Now the congresswoman, who has twice voted in favor of federal marijuana legalization bills on the House floor in 2020 and 2022, is on board with Amendment 3.

“We are honored to have support of Rep. Frankel, a significant signal that passing Amendment 3 is the best path forward for Floridians,” Morgan Hill, spokesperson for Smart & Safe Florida, said. “Ending the arrest and incarceration of adults for simple marijuana possession and ensuring Floridians have access to safe, tested products means a more just and secure Florida.”

“Safe lab-tested marijuana will save lives and put an end to outdated laws that ruin people’s lives for merely possessing or consuming small amounts of marijuana.”

Thank you @RepLoisFrankel for your support of #YesOn3, and freedom in Florida. pic.twitter.com/sa0vgOp7al

— Smart & Safe Florida (@SmartandSafeFl) August 29, 2024

There’s been a mixed bag of feedback on Amendment 3 from members of Florida’s congressional delegation.

One pro-legalization GOP congressman, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), recently said he intends to vote against it, strictly because he feels the reform should be enacted statutorily, rather than as a constitutional amendment that would prove more challenging to amend.

On the other hand, Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, predicted earlier this year that the measure will pass.

Meanwhile, a top staffer for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and the CEO of a top marijuana company feuded over the state legalization initiative recently, drawing attention to the anti-cannabis governor’s position on allowing home cultivation, which would not be included in the reform measure.

While DeSantis is actively opposing the legalization measure and has not voiced support a home grow option, the staffer said last week that “Amendment 3 would create a monopoly on recreational” that “doesn’t allow home growing.”

A spokesperson for Smart & Safe Florida told Marijuana Moment that single-subject restrictions for ballot measures under the state Constitution meant advocates would’ve risked disqualification if they included provisions to provide a home cultivation options.

Meanwhile, a Florida poll released this week found majority support for the legalization initiative. But the results show it falling just short of the steep 60 percent requirement for passage in the state.

Another a pair of polls published this month similarly found majority support for the Florida legalization initiative—but just one of them found there’s enough support to meet the 60 percent threshold for passage under state law.

Separately, the head of Florida’s correctional department claimed in an op-ed this month that passing the marijuana legalization initiative would actually “increase” the state’s prison population—a paradoxical assertion that’s being promoted by top staff of DeSantis.

Advocates and stakeholders are also awaiting a statement about the legalization measure from former President Donald Trump, a Florida resident who recently indicated he disagrees with criminalizing people over cannabis as more states enact legalization and who said he’d be weighing in on Amendment 3 “fairly soon.”

Roger Stone, a longtime Trump ally and GOP political operative, told Marijuana Moment this month that if the Republican nominee does ultimately endorse the initiative, that would “guarantee victory.”

Meanwhile, a hedge fund billionaire announced earlier this month that he’s spending $20 million “in support of candidates and to oppose Amendment 3.” Of that, a $12 million donation will go directly to the Vote No on 3 campaign.

Overall, there’s been a mixed bag of supports and opponents of the legalization measure. For example, a Florida GOP senator recently endorsed the ballot initiative, breaking with the state Republican party that he previously chaired.

The Florida Republican Party officially came out against the marijuana initiative in May, clearing the way for the governor to raise money to fund an opposition campaign against the measure.

The GOP state senator’s endorsement of the legalization measure came one day after the Florida Police Chiefs Association (FPCA) and the Florida Sheriffs Association (FSA) both came out against Amendment 3. They argued that the reform would cause increases in youth use, impaired driving, illicit operations and tax costs for residents, citing dubious evidence.

Smart & Safer Florida, meanwhile, has earned endorsements from a variety of organizations, officials and lawmakers, including Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan (D), Gadsden Sheriff Morris Young, Service Employees International Union (SEUI) and state Sens. Joe Gruters (R) and Shevrin Jones (D).

Last month, the governor also lashed out against Amendment 3 at the Republican National Convention, making hyperbolic claims about what the reform would allow—claims backers say are “absolutely untrue.”

DeSantis called the proposed constitutional amendment “limitless,” arguing that it would establish a right to marijuana that would be more fundamental than First Amendment or Second Amendment protections for free speech and guns, respectively.

Speaking at a recent police event, DeSantis falsely claimed that most Colorado voters “regret” approving marijuana legalization. In fact, recent polling shows that the reform continues to enjoy strong support there.

Last month, news broke that DeSantis’s so-called “Florida Freedom Fund” received a $100,000 donation from the cannabis company group POB Ventures in order to help defeat the marijuana and abortion proposals. That amount was nearly ten times what the campaign had raised in total at the beginning of July.

In an exclusive interview with Marijuana Moment, the CEO of POB Ventures, Patrick O’Brien, said he’s not against adult-use cannabis legalization in principle—but is instead troubled by the specific language of the ballot initiative because it provides an option, rather than a mandate, for regulators to approve additional licenses.

Suspicions about the motivations behind the contribution to DeSantis’s PAC aren’t likely to dissolve, especially amid reporting from CBS News Miami that unnamed hemp businesses have joined forces to back DeSantis in his fight against the legalization measure, with a pledge to contribute $5 million collectively to the state Republican Party after the governor vetoed the bill that ostensibly would have wiped out the market by banning most consumable cannabinoid products.

It’s been previously reported that the governor is hoping to garner support for his efforts to defeat the marijuana legalization initiative from the state’s hemp industry. DeSantis seemed to concede in June that his veto of a bill to ban most consumable hemp-derived cannabinoids was at least partly because he hoped the market would aid in his anti-legalization campaign.

The DeSantis campaign committee, even with the recent contributions, is still miles behind the legalization campaign, Smart & Safe Florida, in terms of fundraising. The legalization effort has raised over $60 million since launching in late 2022.

DeSantis has been railing against the marijuana measure for months—most recently arguing that it would protect the right to use cannabis more strongly than the First Amendment protects free speech or the Second Amendment protects gun rights—and again claiming that the reform has been a “failed experiment” in states such as Colorado.

The governor said that the proposal would allow people to “do marijuana wherever you want—just smoke it, take it, and it would turn Florida into San Francisco or Chicago or some of these places.”

He also reprised one of his chief complaints about the potential impact of legalization: smelling cannabis.

“We’ve got to keep our streets clean. We cannot have every town smelling like marijuana. We cannot have every hotel smelling—theme parks,” he said, adding that voters don’t really understand the specifics of the legalization proposal and that ballot initiatives are generally “so bogus.”

DeSantis acknowledged that the state Supreme Court has a role in reviewing ballot language for constitutionality, and that a majority of justices determined that the marijuana measure met the legal standard. But while he previously correctly predicted the court would approve the initiative following a challenge from state Attorney General Ashley Moody (R), he now says the two dissenting justices were “correct” in trying to block voters from deciding on the measure.

DeSantis also claimed in June that that if voters approve the marijuana legalization initiative, people “will be able to bring 20 joints to an elementary school”—and he again complained about the prevalent odor of cannabis that he says would result from the reform.

Legalization has “not worked in any single place,” the governor said, and he challenged a recent ad from the campaign that promoted regulating cannabis as an alternative to the status quo of people using untested cannabis from illicit sellers.

Meanwhile, according to a Fox News poll released in June, two in three Florida voters support the cannabis initiative—with the issue proving more popular than the governor himself. The survey showed majority support for legalization across the political spectrum, too.

The governor has consistently argued that the state shouldn’t go beyond the existing medical cannabis program and that broader reform would negatively impact the quality of life for Floridians. The Florida Republican Party also formally came out against Amendment 3 in May.

Smart & Safe Florida separately announced in March that it was working to form a coalition of veterans to build voter support for the reform, and the campaign has since formally launched that initiative.

—Marijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,500 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.—

Here’s what the Smart & Safe Florida marijuana legalization initiative would accomplish:

• Adults 21 and older could purchase and possess up to three ounces of cannabis for personal use. The cap for marijuana concentrates would be five grams.

• Medical cannabis dispensaries could “acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute marijuana products and marijuana accessories to adults for personal use.”

• The legislature would be authorized—but not required—to approve additional entities that are not currently licensed cannabis dispensaries.

• The initiative specifies that nothing in the proposal prevents the legislature from “enacting laws that are consistent with this amendment.”

• The amendment further clarifies that nothing about the proposal “changes federal law,” which seems to be an effort to avoid past legal challenges about misleading ballot language.

• There are no provisions for home cultivation, expungement of prior records or social equity.

• The measure would take effect six months following approval by voters.

Here’s the full text of the ballot title and summary:

“Allows adults 21 years or older to possess, purchase, or use marijuana products and marijuana accessories for non-medical personal consumption by smoking, ingestion, or otherwise; allows Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers, and other state licensed entities, to acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute such products and accessories. Applies to Florida law; does not change, or immunize violations of, federal law. Establishes possession limits for personal use. Allows consistent legislation. Defines terms. Provides effective date.”

Economic analysts from the Florida legislature and DeSantis’s office, estimate that the marijuana legalization initiative would generate between $195.6 million and $431.3 million in new sales tax revenue annually if voters enact it. Those figures could increase considerably if lawmakers opted to impose an additional excise tax on cannabis transactions that’s similar to the ones in place in other legalized states.

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Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.