The same poll that shows Charlie Crist leading Rick Scott in a hypothetical matchup in next year’s Florida governor’s race also shows Floridians overwhelmingly support marijuana use for medicinal purposes, but aren’t in favor of changing Florida’s Stand Your Ground law. Peter Brown is the Assistant Director of Quinnipiac University’s Polling Institute, which conducted the survey.
“Despite all the controversy over Stand Your Ground, there has been no decrease in support. 3 in 5 Floridians think it’s a good idea. It’s basically where it’s been since we’ve been polling it, since the issue came up in the Trayvon Martin case,” said Brown.
The poll also shows there’s about an even split on recreationally using marijuana. But 82-percent of registered voters support allowing adults to use marijuana if prescribed by a doctor.
“If the folks who want to make marijuana legal in Florida for medicinal purposes can get it on the ballot, it will be a very, very strong favorite to pass,” added Brown.
Brown says in non-presidential elections, voter turnout usually consists of older white people. But he says if the medical marijuana issue gets on the ballot, it will likely get younger voters to the polls. The Quinnipiac poll suggests that’s another way Charlie Crist would have the upper hand in a gubernatorial matchup against Rick Scott. The most recent numbers suggest 54 percent of the voters under 30-years-old favor the Republican-turned-Democrat, while Scott gets 27-percent of the youth vote.
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