Michigan’s residents will likely vote to legalize recreational marijuana, provided a new poll conducted by EPIC-MRA is correct. Commissioned by the Michigan chapter of NORML, the February poll indicates 61 percent of surveyed voters support reforming their marijuana law in the Wolverine State.
A 30 second morning news break. https://t.co/OKBvVU8vnL
— Michigan NORML (@MINORML) March 7, 2018
For the survey, Michigan residents were asked:
“If enough valid petition signatures are collected, a proposal may appear on a future election ballot relating to the issue of marijuana. The proposal would make the possession and cultivation of limited amounts marijuana legal in the State of Michigan for adults age 21 or older. Also, it would allow the sale of marijuana to adults age 21 or older only by stores that would be licensed by the state, and finally, it would tax the sale of marijuana by these state licensed stores. If this proposal were to appear on a future election ballot, if the election were held today, would you vote yes to approve of the proposal, or would you vote no to oppose it?”
The poll, conducted between Feb. 24 and Feb. 27, was broken down into three tiers of support for legalizing marijuana; 45 percent said they would “definitely vote yes,” 13 percent noted they would “probably vote yes,” and another 3 percent stated they “lean” toward legalization.
So far, at least one of Michigan’s 22 gubernatorial candidates has backed the progressive policy.
Marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol and has clear medical benefits. Criminalizing marijuana keeps it from people who need it, contributes to unnecessary incarceration & marginalizes people of color. We don’t need more of that – not in America, not in Michigan. #Legalize
— Abdul El-Sayed (@AbdulElSayed) March 6, 2018
Abdul El-Sayed, a candidate to become the next governor of Michigan and a former Executive Director of Detroit Department of Health and Wellness, underscored the argument at the heart of repealing prohibition in a 2017 Facebook post.
Michigan’s Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol needed to turn in 252,523 valid signatures from registered voters to place the ballot proposal on the statewide ballot in 2018, the Coalition turned in more than 360,000 signatures to state election officials last November.
