Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks against Amendment 3 during a press conference at Florida International University on Nov. 4, 2024. (Screenshot via X)
Gov. Ron DeSantis spent the day before the election holding press conferences to continue his bashing of the recreational marijuana amendment.
The governor started his statewide tour against Amendment 3 and Amendment 4, the abortion-rights measure, on Oct. 21, the first day of early voting. But ahead of Election Day, DeSantis’ focus was on defeating the marijuana amendment, as polls suggest it’s likely to win the 60% approval it needs to pass.
In what the governor called a roundtable discussion, which didn’t include any back-and-forth between the speakers, at Florida International University, he rehashed his criticism of the amendment.
“I think the Constitution should be a sacred document. It should not be just for sale to the highest bidder. You come in and you just blanket with mailers and text messages and all this other stuff, and somehow you can amend the Constitution,” DeSantis said.
He continued: “If you honestly think this is something good to be in a constitution, well, you know what? It’s a free country. But I don’t think very many people that really take the time to do this, to get away from kind of the propaganda that’s out there and think about this. I don’t think they’re going to think it’s something that’s appropriate to be in the state of Florida’s Constitution.”
Two recent polls from Florida Atlantic University and the University of North Florida both show the amendment passing or close to passing. The UNF poll shows Amendment 4 with enough support to pass; the FAU poll shows it’s just under the threshold.
Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez joined the event, addressing voters in Spanish, calling Amendment 3 corporate greed.
Despite saying that there might be time for questions, the governor ended the Miami press conference without taking any (nor has he taken any at any of the campaign-style events he’s mounted against Amendments 3 and 4). Instead, the governor talked about the University of Miami players’ experience at the University of California, Berkeley, game.
“Some of these guys are telling me they practically got high just from being in the stadium — that literally, the whole stadium just reeks of marijuana,” DeSantis said.
Shevaun Harris, Department of Children and Families secretary, and Mark Wilson, Florida Chamber of Commerce President and CEO, spoke against the amendment in Miami and in a subsequent press conference at an Orlando church.
Meanwhile, Smart & Safe Florida, the committee backing Amendment 3, held a press conference with veterans. Morgan Hill, the campaign’s spokesperson, called out the DeSantis administration’s use of state funds from the opioid settlement trust fund to defeat the amendment.
“While we know marijuana is the best alternative to opioid use, we are seeing the state actually dip into opioid settlement funds to the tune of at least $4 million to fight Amendment 3,” Hill said in the group’s press conference Monday morning.
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