About two-thirds of Connecticut residents support the legalization of recreational marijuana, according to the latest poll by Sacred Heart University.
The poll was conducted among 1,000 state residents between March 23 and 31, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.02%.
According to the survey, 65.7% of respondents support the legalization of recreational marijuana for users over the age of 21. In addition, 48.1% agreed the legalization would result in a significant increase in the number of individuals operating vehicles under the influence.
Seventy-seven percent of respondents said they believe marijuana has either “fewer effects” (42.4%) or “the same amount of effects” (34.6%) as alcohol ”“ compared with over 71.8% in February. In addition, 72.3% of survey respondents indicated they believe marijuana has fewer effects than other drugs such as heroin, amphetamines and prescription pain medications.
If marijuana were legalized, 62.3% of those surveyed would support the erasure of criminal records for those previously convicted of recreational offenses/possession, consistent with 62.1% in February.
Other findings of the survey include:
- 71.2% of respondents describing their quality of life in the state as being either “excellent” (17.3%) or “good” (53.9%), which marked an increase from the 68.3% who reported the same in February.
- An increased approval of Gov. Ned Lamont”™s job performance ”“ 57.3%, compared with 55.9% in February. By party affiliation, Lamont”™s approval rating was 76.7% among Democrats, 41.9% among Republicans, 53.3% among Independents and 44% among unaffiliated voters.
- During the pandemic, 73.2% approved of how the governor is handling “communication to the public, compared with 73.6% in February. His “overall response and handling” of the crisis rated a 70.1% approval in March, compared with 70.7% the previous month.
