Analysis

Angus Reid Poll: Most Canadians, Americans Support Marijuana Legalization — Expect It To Be Legal Within Ten Years


Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–November 30, 2012

by Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director 

A majority of adults in both Canada and the United States believe that cannabis ought to be legal, according to a two-country Angus Reid Public Opinion poll of 1,005 randomly selected Canadian adults and 1,002 randomly selected American adults.

In the online survey of representative national samples, a majority of Canadians (57 percent) and Americans (54 percent) support the legalization of marijuana. Sixty-six percent of those polled in both countries said that they anticipate that cannabis will be legalized within the next ten years.

Respondents strongly opposed the notion of legalizing any other illicit substances besides marijuana.

Respondents in the Northeastern region of the United States expressed the highest level of support for legalizing marijuana (61 percent), while those in the South voiced the least level of support (51 percent). Nationally, 65 percent those age 18 to 34 backed legalization; 49 percent of respondents age 35 and older did so.

In Canada, men (64 percent) were more likely than women (50 percent) to call for the legalization of cannabis. By contrast, Americans’ support for legalization was nearly equally among genders (55 percent male support versus 53 percent female support).

The Angus Reid results are similar to those of other national surveys — including those conducted by Gallup, Rasmussen, and YouGov — showing that more Americans now support legalizing the adult use of cannabis than support maintaining its prohibition.

[UPDATE! A separate nationwide poll released today by CBS News finds: “For the first time since CBS News began asking the question, as many Americans now think marijuana use should be legal as think it should not.

“Support for legalizing marijuana inched up slightly from 45 percent in September to 47 percent today. … Another 47 percent think it should remain prohibited. A year ago, a slight majority of Americans, 51 percent, opposed legalizing marijuana use. … While 51 percent of Democrats and 55 percent of independents support legalizing marijuana, 66 percent of Republicans oppose it.”

It adds: “Eighty-three percent of Americans favor allowing doctors to prescribe small amounts of marijuana for patients suffering from serious illnesses, the poll shows – up from 77 percent a year ago and 62 percent back in 1997. A majority of Americans of all ages – as well as most Republicans, Democrats, and independents – favor allowing this.”]

Source: http://blog.norml.org/


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