Anti-marijuana legalization policy advocacy group celebrates defeat of Florida amendment

Florida’s Amendment 3 would have legalized recreational marijuana use in the state for people who were at least 21 years old. It also would have permitted people to have three ounces of the drug in their possession without any legal repercussions. Additionally, any existing Medical Marijuana Treatment Center that sold marijuana for medicinal purposes would have also been permitted to sell marijuana for recreational use. 

The policy advocacy group, Smart Approaches to Marijuana, was pleased with the results of the election in Florida. 

“Florida’s voters chose families and public safety over getting bought off by a big corporate scam,” Luke Niforatos, Executive Vice President of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, told the Washington Examiner. “With four states across the country rejecting legalization, it’s clear marijuana is a losing policy issue that voters have soured on. Gov. DeSantis was right to join us in leading the charge against marijuana in Florida and their families are safer for that effort.”

SAM is a self-described “alliance of organizations and individuals dedicated to a health-first approach to marijuana policy.” Its mission is to envision “a society where marijuana policies are aligned with the scientific understanding of marijuana’s harms, and the commercialization and normalization of marijuana are no more.”

The bill had received support from former President Donald Trump earlier this year. Meanwhile, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) was a staunch opponent of Amendment 3. DeSantis urged voters to not support the bill.

“It’ll have implications for quality of life if it passes,” DeSantis said during a recent political event.

Nearly 56% of voters supported Amendment 3 while about 44.1% voted against it. However, the bill needed approval from 60% of the state’s voters in order to officially become law. Despite the failure of Amendment 3 to pass, people in Florida will still be able to use marijuana for medicinal purposes. 

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After the polls closed and efforts for Amendment 3 were defeated at the ballot box, DeSantis took to social media to celebrate.

“With polls now closed in Florida,” DeSantis posted, “Amendment 3 has failed.”