{"id":75444,"date":"2024-05-20T09:20:46","date_gmt":"2024-05-20T17:20:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/05\/20\/desantis-will-respect-florida-voters-legalization-decision-at-the-ballot-even-as-state-officials-urge-opposition-marijuana-company-ceo-says\/"},"modified":"2024-05-20T12:45:47","modified_gmt":"2024-05-20T20:45:47","slug":"desantis-will-respect-florida-voters-legalization-decision-at-the-ballot-even-as-state-officials-urge-opposition-marijuana-company-ceo-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/05\/20\/desantis-will-respect-florida-voters-legalization-decision-at-the-ballot-even-as-state-officials-urge-opposition-marijuana-company-ceo-says\/","title":{"rendered":"DeSantis Will Respect Florida Voters\u2019 Legalization Decision At The Ballot Even As State Officials Urge Opposition, Marijuana Company CEO Says"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The CEO of a major marijuana company says she\u2019s confident Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) will respect the will of the people and implement a legalization initiative if voters approve it at the ballot this November\u2014even if he is currently campaigning against it and as another top state official is arguing that a recent car crash allegedly involving cannabis is reason to vote against the measure.<\/p>\n

Kim Rivers, the chief executive of the multi-state cannabis operator Trulieve that\u2019s financially supporting the Smart & Safe Florida campaign, also discussed efforts to strategically target advertisements to build support for the legalization measure amid recent polling that has cast doubts on its prospects of passage.<\/p>\n

In an interview with The Dales Report on Friday, Rivers again challenged surveys that have been released in the weeks since the Florida Supreme Court cleared the initiative for ballot placement. She reiterated that internal polls show the measure passing with a comfortable margin<\/a>, despite the steep 60 percent threshold required to approve a constitutional amendment.<\/p>\n

Asked about DeSantis\u2019s recent comments opposing the proposal, Rivers said she isn\u2019t convinced that the governor\u2019s position is \u201c100 percent policy-based,\u201d and the campaign may be facing the criticism because its a \u201cbyproduct\u201d of the administration\u2019s opposition to a separate abortion rights measure that the court also allowed to appear on the ballot following an unsuccessful challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s a lot of strategic conversation right now happening on abortion, and then I think that we\u2019re a little bit of a byproduct of that,\u201d she said. \u201cI do think that Governor DeSantis historically has been absolutely a man who I think will continue to stand behind the will of the people once they\u2019ve spoken.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cLook, I mean, getting over 60 percent of the electorate to vote in favor of anything is a tall feat,\u201d Rivers said, adding that \u201cwe will have to go through implementation, but I do not expect or anticipate that Governor DeSantis would put up massive roadblocks post-approval in November.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also discussed the recent launch of several advertisements in support of the campaign<\/a> that are meant to educate voters and help close the gap ahead of Election Day. She said the media campaign \u201cis primarily focused in certain areas of the state where we know, based on our data analytics, that there are a lot of folks who are persuadable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally, right now, we\u2019re leaning into those messages that we\u2019ve already test-messaged with a series of polls and questions and focus groups to just see, again, are they actually effective and moving folks off of maybe a likely yes or a neutral to all the way yes or in-the-bank voters,\u201d she said. \u201cSo right now the goal for the short-term is to increase that number of in-the-bank voters\u2014to get that as high as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know during campaigns that once negative advertising starts, the number will naturally slip some, so you want to have that starting point as high as possible,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Thank you to @TheDalesReport<\/a> for having me on this morning to talk Schedule 3, #YesOn3<\/a> campaign in Florida and of course all things @Trulieve<\/a>! <\/p>\n

And if you want to get involved in the Florida movement for cannabis access please follow @SmartandSafeFl<\/a> and sign up for alerts and\u2026 https:\/\/t.co\/IWiFKNIFED<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Kim Rivers (@rivers_kim) May 17, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Smart & Safe Florida separately announced in March that it was working to form a coalition of veterans<\/a>\u00a0to build voter support for the reform, and the campaign\u00a0has since formally launched that initiative<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While opposition advertising might not have launched yet, state officials have made clear that they\u2019re against the legalization measure. That includes, most recently, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis (R).<\/p>\n

Speaking with WESH 2 News last week, Patronis said a recent vehicular accident that killed eight people, involving a driver who allegedly used marijuana and various prescription drugs including a benzodiazepine, should motivate people to vote against the cannabis measure.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are eight lives that are never going to see their parents again because somebody was abusing a substance that he may have even gotten illegally,\u201d he said<\/a>, adding that while he recognized the medical value of cannabis for certain patients, he\u2019s a \u201chard no\u201d on adult-use legalization.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would err on the side of caution and vote no. Right now, just allowing the voters to go and make it recreational,\u201d he said. \u201cTo me, that\u2019s like giving a 9-year-old kid the keys to the candy store. They will abuse it and take advantage of it in ways that are not in the best interest of their well-being.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The Florida Republican Party also officially come out against a marijuana legalization initiative this month<\/a>, clearing the way for DeSantis to raise money to fund an opposition campaign against the measure.<\/p>\n

DeSantis also previously\u00a0predicted voters will reject the marijuana initiative in November<\/a>\u00a0and argued that passage would \u201creduce the quality of life\u201d in the state.<\/p>\n

Whether the officials\u2019 comments against the measure sway voters in a meaningful way is yet to be seen. But while the campaign and companies backing the measure remain optimistic about its prospects this November, recent surveys continue to raise questions about that possibility.<\/p>\n

For example, a survey that was done for the Florida Chamber of Commerce by Cherry Communications found that\u00a058 percent of Florida likely voters back the legalization measure<\/a>, compared to 37 percent who oppose it and five percent who are undecided. As Rivers pointed out last week, however, the chamber has actively opposed the initiative.<\/p>\n

While the campaign hasn\u2019t shared its internal polling, it is the case that prior surveys have shown the initiative in a more comfortable position than the two most recent public polls did. A University of North Florida (UNF) poll released last November found\u00a0nearly 70 percent of voters are in favor of the reform, for example<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2014
\nMarijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,500 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills<\/a> in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters<\/a> pledging at least $25\/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don\u2019t miss any developments.<\/strong>
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\n\u2014<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

Economic analysts from the Florida legislature and DeSantis\u2019s office, estimate that the marijuana legalization initiative would\u00a0generate between $195.6 million and $431.3 million<\/a>\u00a0in new sales tax revenue annually if voters enact it. Those figures could increase considerably if lawmakers opted to impose an additional excise tax on cannabis transactions that\u2019s similar to the ones in place in other legalized states.<\/p>\n

If approved, the measure would change the state Constitution to allow existing medical cannabis companies in the state, such as Trulieve, the campaign\u2019s main financial contributor, to begin selling marijuana to all adults over 21. It contains a provision that would allow\u2014but not require\u2014lawmakers to take steps toward the approval of additional businesses. Home cultivation by consumers would not be allowed under the proposal as drafted.<\/p>\n

Adults would be able to purchase and possess up to one ounce of cannabis, only five grams of which could be marijuana concentrate products. The three-page measure also omits equity provisions favored by advocates, such as expungements or other relief for people with prior cannabis convictions.<\/p>\n

Nearly all of the campaign\u2019s financial backing has come from existing medical marijuana businesses, predominantly multi-state operators. Recently, the Florida Division of Elections (DOE)\u00a0released the campaign finance activity report from the first quarter of the year<\/a>, showing nearly $15 million in new contributions.<\/p>\n

Trulieve, the main financial backer of the initiative, led the pack again with $9.225 million in donations during the first quarter. That follows the company previously contributing\u00a0about $40 million as advocates\u00a0worked to collect more than one million signatures to qualify for ballot placement<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The company\u2019s CEO also said recently that, contrary to the governor\u2019s claims, legalization could actually \u201cimprove quality of life\u201d for residents<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what the Smart & Safe Florida marijuana legalization initiative would accomplish:<\/strong><\/p>\n