After reaching a 44-year high last year, support for legalizing pot dropped seven points, according to a new Gallup poll.
The big divides in support for legalization by ideology and region suggest that, for now at least, the prospects of Southern and Midwestern states legalizing pot are dim, though the long-term trend is on the side of advocates, Gallup notes:
As long as support hovers around the 50% mark, it will be difficult for proponents to promote legalization beyond the more Democratic and liberal-oriented states. The South and Midwest are likely to remain less hospitable, at least for the time being. But with a super-majority of younger Americans supportive – 64% of those aged 18 to 34, contrasted with 41% of those 55 and older — it seems inevitable that this will eventually change.
More than 1 million voters — most of them in Oregon — approved legalization in Alaska, Oregon and D.C. on Tuesday.
The poll was conducted in mid-October, in the run-up to the successful votes for legalization in Alaska, Oregon and D.C. and could have been affected by the related debate. Also, last year’s vote came before Colorado or Washington had implemented their legalization laws. Resulting concerns — particularly related to edibles in Colorado — may have affected support for those on the edge.