A recent poll found that a large majority of Utah residents support the idea of legalizing medical marijuana.
In a sign that marijuana reform is gaining traction, even in states that are considered conservative, a new poll just found that residents of Utah want serious change.
The University of Utah and the Salt Lake Tribue found that 75 percent of Utah residents are in favor of legalizing medical marijuana. This closely resembles a poll from July that found approval to be at 77 percent. Almost all Democrats (93 percent) and 65 percent of Republicans are in favor medical marijuana in Utah.
Support for medical marijuana seems to be rising quickly. In January, only 54 percent of Utah residents agreed with legalizing. Marijuana advocacy groups seem pleased with the trend.
“We definitely think things are trending in the right direction,” said DJ Schanz, executive director of the Utah Patients Coalition (UPC), according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The UPC is organizing a ballot measure to try and get a medical marijuana law onto the ballots for voters in November 2018.
“It’s a positive change in our state and across the country. We’re seeing such a positive [stance towards medical marijuana],” said Christine Stenquist, president of Together for Responsible Use and Cannabis Education.
If the ballot initiative filed by the UPC is passed by voters it would allow medical marijuana to be used for MS, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, PTSD, autism, and chronic pain.
The UPC has held 10 public hearings and has approximately 1,000 volunteers to collect signatures. In order to get the issue on the ballots for the 2018 election, 113,000 valid signatures will have to be submitted by April 15.
There are already 29 states that have legalized medical marijuana.
