North Carolina Voters Strongly Support Medical Marijuana Legalization, Poll Shows

A medical cannabis bill passed the Senate last year but stalled in the House.

By Alan Wooten, The Center Square

Nearly 8 in 10 North Carolinians support the Legislature revisiting and passing a medical marijuana bill in the short session this year.

According to this month’s release of the Meredith Poll, 78 percent support passage and only 18 percent said they were opposed. In the long session last year, the North Carolina Compassionate Care Act passed the Senate but did not get a vote in the House of Representatives.

Known as Senate Bill 3, some lawmakers are hopeful for its return and possibly a floor vote in the lower chamber.

The poll sampled 760 people January 26-31 and delivered a confidence interval of +/-3.5 percentage points. The poll is housed in Meredith University’s Department of History, Political Science, and International Studies.

The analysis queried the usual topics related to this election cycle and found no significant changes. Democrat Josh Stein (39 percent) held a slim lead over Republican Mark Robinson (35 percent) in the governor’s race, with only 17 percent undecided.

In another potential matchup after next month’s primaries, former President Donald Trump was ahead of President Joe Biden 44 percent-39 percent .

The poll says 91 percent want the General Assembly to enact a law prohibiting drivers from holding a mobile device while driving.

Casinos, a battle point for lawmakers headed into last year’s passage of the two-year state budget, are favored by 54 percent.

Casting ballots in this election cycle has already started. Mail-in absentee ballots started going out January 19, in-person early voting begins Thursday of next week, and the Primary Election Day is March 5.

Committee work, albeit a light schedule, has begun in the General Assembly. All 170 seats are up for election, and many are in campaigns during the primaries.

The short session is expected to begin in earnest April 24 and run through July 31. Limited voting sessions are planned February 14-15, March 13-14, and April 10-11.

This story was first published by The Center Square.

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