Poll Shows Both Abortion and Cannabis Lead Constitutional Amendments • Florida Phoenix

A poll released Tuesday shows that the proposed constitutional amendment to restore abortion rights is gaining traction, as is a measure to legalize recreational cannabis use for adults.

The poll of 774 Floridians who said they would definitely or probably vote in the upcoming election was conducted by the University of North Florida’s Public Opinion Research Lab between July 24 and 27.

Amendment 3 received 64% support, 31% opposition, and 5% were undecided or declined to answer the question. All constitutional amendments in Florida require 60% to become law. As Phoenix previously reported, of the 15 states that put the question of legalizing recreational cannabis to voters, only three passed the measure with more than 60%: New Jersey, Maryland, and Arizona.

Until recently, the organization that supported Amendment 3, Smart & Safe Florida, had been unopposed, having raised more than $60 million in support of the measure. Earlier this month, the group Vote No on 3 was formed to oppose the amendment. The Florida Police Chiefs Association also announced its opposition on Tuesday.

“It is not yet clear how much money is being put into the campaign against this amendment,” Michael Binder, faculty director of the poll and a professor of political science, said in a press release. “If the opposing organizations ramp up their campaigns, we could see this number drop, depending on how much money is put into the opposition.

Amendment 4 has even more support, with 69% saying yes and only 23% saying no. Eight percent said they didn’t know or declined to answer.

“Again, we have yet to see campaigns on either side of this amendment really get going,” Binder said. “Given the very controversial and contentious financial impact statement that was recently added to the ballot summary, I expect support for this amendment to wane before November.

The Florida Supreme Court has scheduled expedited hearings on a challenge to the financial impact statement by sponsor Floridians Protecting Freedom.

A new political committee to oppose Amendment 4, called Life First, was announced Tuesday. It’s at least the third PAC formed to defeat Amendment 4, along with Do No Harm Florida and Florida Voters Against Extremism.

Governor Ron DeSantis’ new PAC, the Florida Freedom Fund, is also raising money to fight both Amendments 3 and 4.

The poll is the first in Florida to compare Donald Trump to Kamala Harris, the new presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, but the results aren’t much different than when Joe Biden ran. The poll shows Trump ahead by 7 points, 49%-42%. Another 4% favored a third-party candidate, and 6% were undecided.

The U.S. Senate race between Republican Rick Scott and his likely Democratic opponent, former congresswoman Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, is neck and neck. Scott leads 47%-43%, with 1% backing another candidate and 10% undecided.