Roughly 60% of Americans think states should be allowed to legalize marijuana, while more than two-thirds said states with such laws should get a “safe haven” from the federal government provided they enact strict regulations on the industry, according to a newly released poll.
The survey – conducted by centrist think tank Third Way – is yet another indication of the nation’s changing views towards marijuana. Americans are increasingly supportive of medical and recreational cannabis, and even some of those who are against legalization believe that states should be able to decide the issue.
Third Way’s national poll, which was conducted in October and released recently, found that 50% of respondents are in favor of legal recreational marijuana for adults and 47% are opposed, while 78% favor medical cannabis with a doctor’s recommendation and 18% are against MMJ.
The poll was in line with an October study by Gallup that showed 51% of Americans backed cannabis legalization nationwide. That number, however, was down from 58% a year earlier.
The Third Way study found that millennials, nonwhites and independents strongly favor recreational marijuana legalization while 30% of Republicans back it.
