The train of cannabis legalization seems to have left the station and is unstoppable. In New Jersey, nearly seven out of ten voters support cannabis legalization referendum scheduled for November 2020.
Supermajority of voters support cannabis referendum
According to a survey done by DKC Analytics and released on Tuesday (July 28), sixty-eight percent of respondents supported the policy change. This translates into a seven-point percentage increase compared to a different poll conducted in April on the same issue.
The survey also reveals that 50 percent of voters support the provision of social consumption lounges for cannabis, against 38 percent that oppose it. A majority of respondents (56 percent) concurred that allowing online ordering and home delivery for marijuana products would be a “good way to provide adults with access.”
Asked why they hold that position, seventy percent of supporters of the legalization initiative said they feel a regulated system will control the illicit market. Sixty-one percent said legalization would generate tax revenue while another 61 percent said it would ensure safer products. Sixty percent said legalization would save taxpayer money that would otherwise go to law enforcement procedures. Forty-three percent of respondents said marijuana is safer than alcohol while 57 percent agreed legalization would motivate the economy.
Respondents who opposed legalization gave concerns about impaired driving (38 percent), increasing youth access (27 percent), and marijuana being used as the first step to drug use (24 percent).
Legalization a win for everyone
John Fanburg is a practicing attorney at Brach Eichler, which commissioned the survey. Speaking about the poll results, he said:
The polling results confirmed our belief that there is overwhelming support for the creation of a regulated, adult-use cannabis marketplace in New Jersey. Respondents supported it because it will create tremendous opportunities. It will create vitally needed new businesses, the state will receive significant tax revenues and illegal sales will be dramatically reduced, if not eliminated. Voters see this as a win for everyone.
Historically, people who identified as Democrats are more likely to support legalization (78 percent). However, a majority of Republicans (57 percent) and Independents (63 percent) also support the policy change. The survey revealed another interesting finding. Most people who took part in the survey (57 percent) said they don’t personally consume marijuana.
The strong level of support for correcting this decades-old inequality, especially in the context of recent protests of inherent bias in law reinforcement, should be well noted by our legislators who will be tasked with correcting this unfortunate consequence of the failed policy of prohibition, said Charles Gormally of Brach Eichler.
The survey, conducted via phone between July 7 and 12, involved interviews with 500 New Jersey likely voters.
