Updated at 7:26 a.m. Nov. 6
Cannabis prohibition will remain in Florida despite a state majority that supports reform.
Fifty-six percent of voters in the Sunshine State cast their ballots in support of Amendment 3, falling short of the 60% supermajority needed for the adult-use legalization measure to pass, according to unofficial election results from the Florida Division of Elections with 100% of precincts reporting as of 7:26 a.m. ET on Nov. 6.
All citizen-initiated constitutional amendments in Florida require a 60% supermajority vote to pass, a threshold that the state’s voters approved in 2006.
Sponsored by Smart & Safe Florida and endorsed by GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump, Amendment 3 aimed to allow anyone 21 years or older to purchase and possess personal amounts of cannabis from licensed dispensaries. But with its failure to pass, the criminalization of cannabis consumers in the nation’s third most populous state will continue.
Under Florida’s prohibition laws, possessing any amount of cannabis is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison, while possessing more than 20 grams (roughly 0.7 ounce) is a felony punishable by up to five years behind bars.
"Tonight, a strong majority of Floridians voted in support of legalizing recreational marijuana for adults," the Smart & Safe Florida campaign said in a public statement. "While the results of Amendment 3 did not clear the 60 percent threshold, we are eager to work with the governor and legislative leaders who agree with us on decriminalizing recreational marijuana for adults, addressing public consumption, continuing our focus on child safety, and expanding access to safe marijuana through home grow.
"We want to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the majority of Florida voters who voted yes on Amendment 3 and everyone who stood with us in this effort. We remain committed to advocating for a smarter and safer Florida and will continue to work towards solutions that benefit all Floridians."
Despite the setback for legalization advocates, support for Amendment 3 was on par with other states that have passed citizen-initiated ballot measures for adult-use cannabis in the U.S., notably with Ohio’s adult-use measure from 2023 gaining 57% voter approval. Only Arizona voters have passed a citizen-initiated adult-use cannabis measure with a 60% supermajority via their support of Proposition 207 in the 2020 election.
Editor’s note: While New Jersey (2020) and Maryland (2022) garnered 67% support at the polls, those states had legislative-referred referendums simply asking voters if they agreed with lawmakers moving forward on legislation to legalize cannabis.
In Florida, the stakes were high for the state’s existing medical marijuana treatment centers (MMTCs), which stood to gain a first-mover advantage in a commercial adult-use marketplace under the proposal.
Specifically, Tallahassee-based Trulieve single-handedly contributed more than $144 million toward the legalization attempt, according to the Division of Elections. That’s roughly half of the company’s quarterly revenue.
"Proud to have fought the fight—we left it all on the field," Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers said on X. "Looking forward to working with the Legislature on the next steps to ensure safe access to marijuana for adults in Florida, decriminalization for personal possession and home grow. A big thank you to everyone across the state who supported the campaign! Onward!"
Sister MMTCs Verano, Curaleaf, AYR Wellness, Green Thumb Industries, Cresco Labs and Insa were the legalization campaign’s other top contributors.
The team at Curaleaf, which donated $3 million toward the campaign, is disappointed that Amendment 3 will not move forward, Chairman and CEO Boris Jordan said in a statement to Cannabis Business Times.
“This initiative represented a significant opportunity to expand access to tested, regulated legal cannabis for Floridians,” Jordan said. “We believe that cannabis can greatly improve the quality of life for many individuals, and we remain committed to advocating for policies that support patient access and responsible use.
“While this setback is disheartening, we will continue to work diligently alongside our colleagues, partners, patients and communities to promote education, awareness and equitable access to cannabis.”
In addition to Trump, Amendment 3 had bipartisan support from Republican state Sen. Joe Gruters and Democratic state Sen. Shevrin Jones, among other lawmakers, as well as from the Florida Democratic Party, the Libertarian Party of Florida, the Florida House Democratic Caucus, the Florida Young Republicans and others.
However, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis was the face of Amendment 3’s opposition campaign through public speeches and through a pair of anti-legalization political action committees—Keep Florida Clean Inc. and Florid Freedom Fund—chaired by his chief of staff, James Uthmeier.
Despite Smart and Safe Florida outraising the governor’s PACs by a 5-to-1 ratio, DeSantis utilized other tactics to thwart public support for Amendment 3, including claims from his administration that Trulieve was attempting to create a monopoly by omitting provisions for home grows and banning additional market entrants.Those omissions were intentional, however, to comply with Florida’s single-subject rule to survive judicial review by the state’s Supreme Court. Amendment 3’s language explicitly left those responsibilities to the Florida Legislature, allowing lawmakers to enact follow-up “laws that are consistent with this amendment.”
In addition to his personal campaign against legalization, DeSantis led a taxpayer-funded “public service announcement” crusade against cannabis in the weeks leading up to an election, allowing various state agencies to warn Floridians about the “dangers” of legalization. This tactic involved TV ads, including one with a Colorado mother saying her son committed suicide because of cannabis and another featuring a trio of Republican sheriffs claiming cannabis leads to increased impaired driving, emergency room visits and domestic abuse.
Cresco Labs CEO Charlie Bachtell said in a statement to CBT, “We’re obviously disappointed that Amendment 3 did not pass, but we always knew this would be an uphill battle in a conservative state like Florida with unprecedented resources misrepresenting how responsible, adult-use cannabis programs look across the country.”
While it’d be difficult to say for certain that the governor’s use of tax dollars for political issues changed the outcome of the election, numerous polls leading up to Nov. 5 showed enough support for Amendment 3’s passage, including an Oct. 20 survey from Emerson College Polling (60% support, 34% oppose), an Oct. 18 survey from the University of North Florida Public Opinion Research Lab (66% support, 32% oppose), and an Oct. 4 survey from Mason-Dixon Polling and Strategy (62% of decided voters support).
With Amendment 3’s failure, the Southern U.S. remains the least progressive region in the nation for cannabis reform. Depending on where one resides in Florida, the closest state for those 21 years and older to purchase cannabis from a licensed dispensary is Missouri or Ohio.
