Donald Trump has expressed support for a proposed amendment to the Constitution that would legalize recreational marijuana use in Florida, the state where he lives.
In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, Trump said that “personal amounts of marijuana for adults will be legalized” with Florida Amendment 3 “whether people like it or not.”
The former US president said: “Someone should not be a criminal in Florida when it is legal in so many other states”, adding: “We do not need to be destroying lives and wasting taxpayer money by arresting adults who are carrying personal quantities.”
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Trump, who lives in Florida, could vote in November on state Amendment 3, which would allow adults 21 and older to legally purchase and use marijuana without a medical card.
Under the proposed amendment, it would still be illegal to grow marijuana on your own and individuals would be prohibited from possessing more than 3 ounces for personal use.
Trump’s support contrasts with that of Florida Gov. and fellow Republican Ron DeSantis, who has been a vocal opponent of the vote. “This is bad policy and even worse constitutional law,” DeSantis wrote in an X post this week.
DeSantis has said he opposes Amendment 3 because of the smell and has claimed, without evidence, that people could “bring 20 joints into an elementary school.”
In his social media post, Trump called on state lawmakers to implement regulations banning marijuana use in public places, “so we don’t smell marijuana everywhere we go.”
However, proponents of marijuana legalization argue that Republican lawmakers are exaggerating the extent of the odor problem in order to support policies that ban public use of cannabis, which Americans have increasingly accepted for years.
Most U.S. states now allow medicinal or recreational use of marijuana. In recent years, 24 states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational use of cannabis — and 14 others have approved it for medical use, according to the Pew Research Center.
The Florida amendment requires 60 percent voter support to pass, and polls show a majority of Florida voters support the measure.
Voters in South Dakota and North Dakota will also vote on initiatives to legalize recreational marijuana during the November elections.
Trump’s post on Truth Social about marijuana on Saturday came as polls generally show him trailing Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris in key states that could decide the battle for the White House between them.
