Florida’s push to put recreational marijuana legalization before voters next year took a significant turn this month, as state elections officials quietly advanced the proposed ballot measure amid mounting pressure from organizers and a legal challenge.
According to The Associated Press, the move came after Smart & Safe Florida — the group leading the legalization effort — filed a complaint with the Florida Supreme Court.
The organization accused election officials under Gov. Ron DeSantis of improperly stalling the initiative in an attempt to keep it off the 2026 ballot.
But in a Nov. 17 filing, Secretary of State Cord Byrd told the court the complaint was no longer necessary.
State officials had already sent a formal letter to Smart & Safe Florida confirming the campaign met the required petition threshold and forwarded the proposed amendment to the attorney general for review.
Those steps mark the official start of the legal vetting process that occurs before any citizen-driven constitutional amendment can appear on the ballot.
Florida law requires the attorney general to request an advisory opinion from the state Supreme Court on whether the ballot language complies with constitutional standards.
The dispute is the latest chapter in a broader battle over Florida’s citizen initiative process, which progressives have long used to advance policies the Republican-controlled Legislature has resisted.
Voters have previously approved amendments raising the minimum wage and restoring voting rights to many Floridians with felony convictions.
Tensions escalated in 2024, when DeSantis campaigned aggressively — and successfully — against efforts to legalize marijuana for personal use and expand abortion rights.
His administration argued that ballot initiatives were being used to circumvent lawmakers and push policies unsupported by the state’s conservative leadership.
In May, the governor signed a law that dramatically increased the costs and requirements for signature-gathering efforts. Critics say the changes were designed to curb grassroots campaigns by making the process prohibitively expensive.
One immediate casualty was a proposal to expand Medicaid, whose organizers announced they would wait until 2028 to pursue the measure.
Despite those obstacles, Smart & Safe Florida has continued pressing forward. Advocates say voters should have the right to decide the issue directly — and that the state’s confirmation of their petition count is a crucial step toward that goal.
The Florida Supreme Court will now review the proposed amendment’s wording, a process that has blocked similar efforts in the past. If the court signs off, voters could see a recreational marijuana initiative on the ballot as soon as next year.
