Up in smoke: Florida Supreme Court shuts down recreational pot measure – Tallahassee Democrat
The Florida Supreme Court decided against considering the ballot text of a proposed constitutional amendment for adult-use recreational marijuana, which the state says failed to meet signature requirements for the 2026 ballot.
On Feb. 4, all of the Supreme Court Justices – except Jorge Labarga – signed the order canceling the oral argument and dismissing the case.
The order did not detail why it decided to dismiss the case, but it deals a blow to the marijuana group’s bid to bring a recreational marijuana industry to Florida.
The group argued that the state’s constitution reads that the court “shall” review ballot language, and that the result of pending lawsuits could give the ballot measure enough signatures to meet the state’s requirements.
The court’s mandate is limited to ensuring the ballot summary and title are clear and not misleading, and comply with the state’s single-subject requirement.
“Today’s order does not decide the merits of Smart & Safe’s ballot language, and it leaves open the possibility for the court to review the ballot language once the pending disputes over tens of thousands of wrongfully invalidated petitions (have) been resolved,” a spokesperson for Smart and Safe Florida said in a statement.
Earlier that day, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said state law was clear, in that there weren’t enough signatures by Feb. 1.
“Even with all the fraud and forgery, the latest weed initiative couldn’t garner enough public support to make the ballot,” Uthmeier said on X. “The Florida Supreme Court appropriately just dismissed the case. Floridians can continue to breathe free air for another election cycle.”
Although Smart and Safe Florida said that the state’s announcement of its failure was “premature” since some counties have not finished counting signatures, the attorney general contended that the required number was simply not met by the state’s Feb. 1 deadline.
The state elections website only lists 783,592 verified signatures for the marijuana petition. It needed 880,062.
One lawsuit could have had a significant impact. The marijuana group is challenging directives by Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd to invalidate about 70,000 signatures because it came from “inactive” voters or because they were collected by nonresidents or noncitizens.
But another major challenge faced by the marijuana group is a new state law (HB 1205) that brought stricter penalties and deadlines for petition groups.
It’s being challenged in federal court, where a federal judge agreed that the provision which prohibits nonresident and noncitizen volunteers from gathering signatures restricts core political speech. Trial in that lawsuit is scheduled to begin Feb. 9.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
This reporting content is supported by a partnership with Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. USA Today Network-Florida First Amendment reporter Stephany Matat is based in Tallahassee, Fla. She can be reached at SMatat@gannett.com. On X: @stephanymatat.
