More than six in ten registered voters say that they intend to vote for a statewide ballot measure this November to legalize the adult-use cannabis market, according to polling data compiled by Monmouth University.
Sixty-one percent of respondents said that they will vote for the measure, which amends the state Constitution to permit the possession, production, and retail sale of cannabis to those age 21 or older. Lawmakers in 2019 overwhelmingly voted to place the measure on the 2020 November ballot after similar legislation failed to gain majority support in the Senate.
“To the best of my knowledge, we’ve not had any discussions about fast-tracking weed legalization,” the governor said.
Democratic lawmakers in both chambers of the legislature cleared a ballot initiative to legalize weed during the lame duck session in December after multiple failed attempts to legalize marijuana through legislation.
Legalizing now could provide the state with some additional revenue to make up for budget shortfalls created by the pandemic.
A majority of registered voters in New Jersey are in favor of a proposal to legalize marijuana for adult use that will appear on the state’s November ballot, according to a poll released Thursday.
Monmouth University’s survey asked respondents to weigh in on the cannabis legalization referendum question that lawmakers placed on ballot and to give their opinions on the potential risks and benefits of the policy change.
Sixty-one percent of respondents said they would vote in support of the proposal, while 34 percent said they’d vote against it.
“The host of the podcast, Mr. Grimes, has done excellent work in his advocacy of medical marijuana, and I intend to be a Congressman out front to expand on these successes,” Cunningham said. “For too long enforcement of cannabis laws has disproportionately harmed communities of color, when Americans across races consume cannabis at the same rates.”
Prior to 1996, cannabis was illegal under both federal and state law throughout the United States. While cannabis remains illegal under federal law today, 11 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for both medicinal and adult recreational purposes.
Gov. Phil Murphy has not had any discussions with legislative leaders about pushing through marijuana legalization ahead of a November referendum in order to secure additional revenues in the face of a fiscal downturn over the COVID-19 crisis.
Lobbyists spent a record $1.9 million in 2019 to campaign on marijuana legalization—half a million dollars more than 2018, according to the report.
Those efforts were ultimately unsuccessful, and the question has since been bounced to voters for the presidential election this November.
“Given the big numbers from other states and the fact that the creation of a lucrative new industry hangs in the balance, it isn’t inconceivable that the fall ballot contest could cost upwards of $10 million,” Brindle said.
Cannabis advocates in New Jersey have formed a coalition that will campaign for a “yes” vote in the recreational marijuana legalization ballot later this year.
Garden State voters will decide on the issue of legalization when they go to the polls in November. The new group, NJ CAN 2020, has been set up to educate people on the manifold benefits that a legal adult-use cannabis industry would bring to the state.
Cannabis-related lobbying expenses climbed 32% last year from $1.4 million to $1.9 million. It’s a new category of lobbying spending in New Jersey, and experts only expect those numbers to increase in 2020, as residents vote in November on a ballot question to legalize marijuana for those over 21.
Not only has petty political squabbling caused New Jersey’s legislature to fail to fully legalize marijuana, it has also resulted in a failure to provide even the short term secondary solution of decriminalizing marijuana as we wait for the initiative to head to the ballot in November.