Amendment 3 fails, which would have legalized recreational marijuana

Amendment 3 -- one of two amendments on the ballot put there by citizens, not lawmakers (the other being Amendment 4) -- failed Tuesday. If it had passed, recreational marijuana would be legal in Florida for adults over 21.

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A 60% supermajority vote is required to pass an amendment and only 56% voted yes.

If voters would have approved it, the Florida Legislature would have written the specific rules, regulations and restrictions to implement it, which may include regulating the places and manner, as it does with tobacco.

This is a similar process as when voters approved the amendment to legalize medical marijuana eight years ago. And Amendment 3 uses as its basis and framework that same language from the medical marijuana amendment.

Amendment 3 would have allowed adults 21 and over to legally buy and possess up to 3 ounces of marijuana, and personally use it. The amendment also would add who can grow it and sell it. Initially, that would be just the 25 licensed medical marijuana companies with more than 600 dispensaries statewide. But Amendment 3 would have allowed lawmakers to also license non-medical entities to grow, acquire, transport, distribute and sell marijuana.

A legal recreational marijuana industry is expected to be big business, according to state analysts. Based on sales tax projections, they project $200 million to $400 million a year going to the state when legal marijuana is fully operational. There is currently no timeline to predict that.

Supporters also cite the saved costs, both personal and for law enforcement, of decriminalizing personal marijuana, sparing an estimated 200,000 people annually from arrest and incarceration.

“The failure of Amendment 3 is a direct result of illegal campaign activity by Ron DeSantis and the Executive Office of the Governor,” Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said in a statement. “Using millions of dollars of opioid settlement money and breaking multiple statutes along the way, Ron used the full force of the state to lie to voters about the effects of cannabis legalization — from enlisting state agencies to produce illegal anti-cannabis propaganda to putting his own Chief of Staff in charge of the campaign effort.

“Floridians everywhere should be outraged at this stunning government overreach. The so-called party of ‘small government’ has turned Florida into an authoritarian hellscape, and they used taxpayer dollars to do it. Florida Democrats will continue to do everything in our power to hold these extremists accountable for their actions.”

Currently, 24 states have legalized marijuana use. Voters in North and South Dakota will also be deciding with Florida in November.

VIEW ALL RESULTS: South Florida General Election Results for Nov. 5, 2024