The campaign to legalize adult-use cannabis in Florida is suing Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration in the state's Supreme Court, alleging state elections officials are trying to improperly block the measure from getting on the ballot in 2026.
It's the latest escalation in a yearslong clash between progressive organizers seeking to amend the state's constitution, and the conservative governor, who in 2024 used state money and his political influence to successfully campaign against efforts to legalize adult personal use of marijuana and expand abortion rights.
In a petition filed Thursday, the group Smart & Safe Florida alleged state officials have "failed to perform an indisputable legal duty" and urged the Florida Supreme Court to order state election officials to confirm the campaign has gathered the hundreds of thousands of voter petitions needed to qualify for the ballot.
Smart & Safe argues it has collected more than three times as many petitions as the law requires, but that for months, state elections officials have failed to formally confirm that milestone. That official confirmation, while procedural, is legally required to put the proposed amendment before the state attorney general, who then must request the state Supreme Court to review the ballot language.
Read more at The Associated Press
