North Carolina Voters Support Legalizing Medical Marijuana In New Poll, With Strong Backing Across Party Lines

A new poll of North Carolina likely voters finds that more than 7 in 10 (71 percent) support legalizing medical marijuana in the state, with majorities across party lines and in every surveyed demographic—aside from people over the age of 80—in favor of the reform.

“North Carolina is one of a handful of states without some form of legal medical marijuana,” noted David McLennan, poll director for the Meredith Poll, which conducted the survey of 703 people earlier this month. “With the public strongly behind such a law and most within the medical community supporting this legislation, it seems like this might be a good time to pass such a bill.”

Among all respondents, 45 percent said they “strongly” support medical marijuana legalization, while 26 percent said they “somewhat” do. Nine percent said they “somewhat” oppose the reform, and 14 percent said they were “strongly” opposed. Another 6 percent of respondents said they didn’t know their feelings on the proposal.

As the poll itself notes, “even those that self-identify as the most conservative residents” support medical marijuana legalization.

Among those residents identifying as “very conservative,” for example, 62 percent said they either strongly or somewhat favor the reform, while 35.8 percent were strongly or somewhat opposed.

By political party, meanwhile, 62.3 percent of Republicans said they support medical marijuana legalization, as did 78.3 percent of Democrats. Among those not affiliated with either party, 73.3 percent said they would like to see medical marijuana legalized.

The only demographic that did not have majority support, according to survey results, were people 80 or older. Among that bloc, 40.7 percent were in favor of medical marijuana legalization, while 44.4 percent were opposed and 14.8 percent said they didn’t know. North Carolinians 80+ years old also had the largest proportion of any other demographic group who said they were “strongly” opposed to medical marijuana (29.6 percent).

After people 80 or older, the youngest surveyed group—people 18 to 28—reported the lowest level of support, at 63.6 percent. Meanwhile respondents 29 to 44 years old had 80 percent support, those 45 to 60 had 74.8 percent support and those 61 to 79 had 65.7 percents support.

By sex, male respondents were slightly more supportive of legalization than were female respondents (72.8 percent versus 70.3 percent, respectively), though strong majorities of both favored legalizing medical marijuana. Female respondents were also more likely than male counterparts to say they were unsure of their feelings on the reform (7.6 percent versus 3.0 percent, respectively).

White people were most likely among racial groups to support legalization (72.7 percent), the survey found, followed by Black respondents (69.2 percent), Hispanic or Latino respondents (62.5 percent) and Asian, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander respondents (58.3 percent).

Kevin Caldwell, southeast legislative manager for the advocacy group Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), said of the new survey results: “The people are ready for this change, will their elected officials listen to them?”

Despite repeated efforts in recent sessions, lawmakers have failed to move medical marijuana legalization forward. Last month, however, a top GOP state senator said there’s “an opportunity” to advance medical marijuana legalization this session, adding felt it should be coupled with legislation to impose restrictions on unregulated intoxicating hemp products.

Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger (R) said “it seems to me that there’s an opportunity there to address the medical marijuana issue,” as well as hemp-derived cannabinoids such as delta-8 THC that are being sold on the market, “at some point during the session.”

Senate Minority Leader Sydney Batch (D) also told Queen City News that medical cannabis reform is one of two “very specific, non-partisan issues” that the legislature is positioned to move on in 2025.

“The incredible level of bipartisan support that medical cannabis continues to have in North Carolina should make it a slam dunk for the General Assembly,” Caldwell of MPP told Marijuana Moment. “However, the continued opposition from entrenched opponents is based more upon control than compassion.”

“To ask a cancer patient or a veteran returning from overseas to continue to use drugs that have a track record of potential addiction and lower quality of life is not empathetic, it is cruel,” he said. “We hope this is the year that changes.”

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Last summer, the state Senate did approve a bill that would legalize medical marijuana—but it stalled out in the House once again.

The legislation was similar to a bill from Sen. Bill Rabon (R), a cancer survivor who has sponsored multiple medical marijuana proposals. The senator previously described his interest in using the hemp legislation as a potential vehicle after his most recent standalone died in the House.

The senator has emphasized that he’s speaking from personal experience when he discusses his support for the legislation. As he’s previously disclosed, Rabon said his doctor advised him to use marijuana before he went through serious chemotherapy, and he visited his local law enforcement to tell them that he intended to break the law to use the plant for therapy.

Former House Speaker Tim Moore (R) said last year that while he personally supports legalizing medical marijuana, there is an informal rule in the chamber that at least 37 GOP members must back any given bill in order to bring it to the floor.

The current House speaker, Rep. Destin Hall (R), has voiced opposition to medical cannabis reform.

Berger, meanwhile, said last April that he had bicameral discussions about the prospect of moving the medical marijuana proposal from Rabon forward as part of the hemp measure. But it remains to be seen if that pathway is viable this session.

Rabon’s standalone legislation moved through the Senate and was taken up by a House committee last year, but it did not advance further in that chamber.

Former House Majority Leader John Bell (R) said in 2023 that while there were “still discussions going on” about medical marijuana legislation, he was “very sure you won’t see that bill move” due to insufficient support among Republicans. He said that was “unfortunately” the case.

A previous version of the North Carolina Compassionate Care Act from Rabon passed the Senate but did not get a vote in the House of Representatives in 2022.

The Senate president previously acknowledged that opinions are shifting when it comes to marijuana in the state, and he said that Rabon specifically “for a long time has looked at the issue.”

Rabon also took another step, including medical marijuana regulatory appointments for the yet-to-be-enacted program in a separate measure that passed the Senate last March.

An Indian tribe in North Carolina launched the state’s first medical marijuana dispensary last April—despite the protests of certain Republican congressional lawmakers. More than a week after legal marijuana sales kicked off to all adults at The Great Smoky Cannabis Co. in Cherokee last year, thousands from across the region made purchases.

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