According to a recent poll, the majority of Americans support President Biden’s move to pardon federal cannabis possession charges. Additionally, they want governors around the country to follow suit per the president’s request.
A recent YouGov America poll found that a majority (61%) of Americans in support of President Biden’s move last week to pardon federal convictions related to cannabis possession and personal use.
Additionally, 62% of Americans said they would like their own governors to follow suit and issue cannabis pardons at the state level, according to a follow-up question posed by the pollster.
This is a major shift in public opinion on cannabis pardons; in 2010, only 36% of Americans supported pardons for those convicted of cannabis crimes. The growing support may be due to the increasing number of states that have legalized cannabis in some form, as well as the widespread belief that prohibition has failed to effectively address public health and safety concerns.
Governors in states with legal cannabis are increasingly being asked to pardon past convictions for cannabis crimes.
According to the YouGov poll, 26% of respondents disapproved of the President’s decision to pardon federal cannabis offenses, while 13% were uncertain. Meanwhile, 25% of respondents disapproved of the idea of state-level pardons with 14% uncertain.
The poll comes amid historic support for the federal reform of cannabis laws, with another poll released last week recording 60% support nationwide for cannabis legalization. Nineteen states have already established adult-use cannabis reforms and an additional five states are set to consider their own legalization proposals this November.
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