If there’s one thing that Americans agree on, it’s weed. This embrace of the drug has been developing for years, and it’s become the unlikely common ground among political parties.
A new poll on President Biden’s pot pardons shows just how much Americans are in support of marijuana’s reevaluation and possible declassification.
The poll, conducted by POLITICO and Morning Consult, shows that nearly two-thirds of voters supported Biden’s pardon for non-violent marijuana convictions. These numbers include 40% of Biden’s strong supporters and 25% of those people that are somewhat supportive of Biden. On average, only one in four survey respondents was opposed to pardoning marijuana offenders.
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When talking about changing marijuana’s classification under federal law, respondents were even more supportive, with 69% of them supporting declassification. One in five respondents said they were opposed to reevaluating marijuana’s federal legal status. The poll also showed that the public is well educated on the topic of cannabis and what Biden’s administration has done on the matter.
Unsurprisingly, the demographic that leads these positive responses is comprised of Millennials. Gen Z was the group that was least likely to be informed on Biden’s marijuana pardons. And two-thirds of Baby Boomers showed support for Biden’s decisions regarding marijuana.
In terms of political parties, Democrats and Independents were in support of Biden’s actions. Republicans were the more divided group, with 57% of them expressing support for reclassifying marijuana while just 46% of them supported marijuana pardons.
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Lastly, when breaking the results down by race, Biden’s move was greatly supported by Black voters, with 74% of them supporting these pardons. This is a key demographic come election and one that was called out when the pardon was issued. “Sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit,” said Biden in a statement last week. “And while white and Black and brown people use marijuana at similar rates, Black and brown people have been arrested, prosecuted, and convicted at disproportionate rates.”
The poll was conducted October 7 to 9 and includes responses of more than 2,000 registered voters.
