Poll: Legalize Pot and Same-Sex Marriage

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A new poll shows that a majority of Michigan residents think residents should be able to light up a joint without fear of prosecution.

The poll, conducted June 9-11 by the Glengariff Group and released exclusively to The Detroit News and WDIV-TV, also showed a majority of residents favor gay rights.

On the marijuana issue, 56 percent of the 600 people surveyed said they support legalization of small amounts of pot for adult recreational use. The poll results are good news for two groups that want to put the issue on the November 2016 ballot. Fewer than 36 percent of residents think Michigan should keep its decades long prohibition on cannabis.

“The issue is in a position to win,” said pollster Richard Czuba, president of the Chicago-based Glengariff Group. “This has a chance, but it’s not an easy campaign.”

Related:

• Petitions to Legalize Pot in Michigan Ready for Signatures

The polling data shows the strongest support for legalization is among likely voters under the age of 30, where 74 percent favor it. More than half – 51 percent – of voters over age 65 oppose it.

Men are more likely than women to vote for legalization, according to the data. Among men, 65 percent favor legalization, while only 48 percent of women think it should be legal.

“The most fascinating dynamic we saw in these numbers is a gender split,” Czuba said. “Any campaign is going to have to focus on convincing women. Men are there.”

Same-Sex Marriage Support Unchanged

On the issue of same-sex marriage, a majority of likely voters – 55 percent to 32.5 percent – support the right of gay couples to marry, but few minds have been changed in the last several years. The results are statistically identical to support level in 2012 and 2014 polls.

Related:

• U.S. Supreme Court to Decide Gay Marriage for All 50 States

The poll also asked if Michigan should recognize same-sex marriages performed in states where such unions are legal if the couples were to move to Michigan. A 61.4 percent majority said yes, while 27.3 percent opposed it.

The questions on gay marriage are identical to those being addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court, which is on the verge of issuing a watershed ruling that could potentially legalize same-sex marriage in all 50 states, finally settling one of the most contentious civil rights issues of modern times.

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In taking up gay marriage appeals in Michigan, Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio, the court said it would consider two key questions: whether states have the power to ban gay and lesbian marriages, and whether states can refuse to recognize marriages performed outside their borders.

The ruling isn’t expected to come until the final days of the court’s term, perhaps June 29 or June 30.