“I don’t support recreational marijuana. I think the current regulatory system around medicinal use is fine.”

Author: Mitch Perry, Phoenix, Florida

the subject of Should Florida legalize recreational cannabis? Smart & Safe Florida, the organization behind the initiative to return to voters this November, disappeared as a major campaign issue earlier this year after falling short of the nearly 880,000 verified petition signatures needed to qualify for the statewide ballot.

That defeat came a year and a half after nearly 56 Floridians voted to legalize recreational marijuana on the November 2024 ballot, a clear majority but far short of the 60 percent needed for passage.

While it’s not something voters will decide this year, Floridians may want to know where the candidates for statewide office stand.

Speaking at a “Business Women for Byron” campaign event Tuesday at the Getaway, a waterfront restaurant and Tiki bar in St. Petersburg, the first question an audience member asked GOP gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds was his stance on the issue.

“I don’t condone recreational marijuana,” Donalds responded. “I think the current regulatory system around drug use is fine.”

Donalds has previously admitted to being arrested for possession of “a dime bag of marijuana” as a teenager, and recently admitted to CBS Miami he actually sold small amounts of cannabis in his youth.

Now he says he doesn’t support expanding legal weed use beyond the 924,820 Floridians listed as medical marijuana patients, according to the Office of Medical Marijuana Use.

Acceptance in medicine, but never for entertainment

Other Republicans running for governor share Donalds’ sentiments.

“I am against recreational marijuana in Florida,” investment firm CEO James Fishback told the Phoenix in a text message. “I’ve seen what it’s done in cities that have already tried it, from New York to Chicago to Washington DC. The stench of pot in public parks and outside our schools can never reach Florida.”

However, Fishback says he will always protect “the right of those who have a legitimate medical purpose, including our U.S. military veterans.”

“No one should be denied herbal medicine and pushed toward an addictive prescription from big pharma for painkillers,” she said. “As governor, I will support medical marijuana. But I won’t allow champs to smoke pot in a public park, just like we already don’t allow them to drink in one.”

“I’ve been clear from day one. I am totally opposed to legalizing marijuana,” Gov. Jay Collins said in a video posted on social media on April 26. “We’ve seen the impact in other states, and it’s not where Florida is headed. I’m with Governor DeSantis on this one. No compromise, and no money from the marijuana industry. That’s all my opponents can say.”

“I’m against recreational marijuana,” former House Speaker Paul Renner said Wednesday at a panel discussion on high energy prices in Hillsborough County.

“We have medical. It was put in the Constitution (in 2016). If people want to get it, they can get it. And we opened that up as much as needed, but I’m against recreation. Period. If it goes back to the ballot, like Gov. DeSantis did.”

DeSantis announced in June 2024 that he would use a political action committee to fight the constitutional amendment on recreational marijuana, saying he could not believe the Florida Supreme Court had agreed to allow the measure’s language to go on the November ballot.

He later used tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to campaign against that proposal and another measure that would have guaranteed abortion rights in Florida, according to a Tampa Bay Times report.

Where are the Democrats?

Phoenix caught up with the two top Democrats running for governor this year: former GOP U.S. Rep. David Jolly and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.

“I think the role of the governor is to represent the majority of the state, and the majority of the state asked for it, and I think we should,” Jolly told the Phoenix in a phone call Tuesday.

The Pinellas County Democrat says he voted against Amendment 3 in 2024, which would have called for the legalization of recreational marijuana use for adults.

But since announcing his candidacy last year, Jolly has emphasized that he will work to implement all of the recent constitutional amendments that have been approved by a majority in Florida, but have failed to reach the high margin of 60 percent needed to take advantage.

“Recreational marijuana received more than 50 percent of the vote in the constitutional amendment process and I would support enactment and introduce any amendment that received more than 50 percent of the vote in the legislature. That includes open primaries, recreational marijuana, and the 4th Amendment on reproductive freedom,” he said.

The only major gubernatorial candidate Phoenix couldn’t clear was Demings. While serving as Orlando’s police chief in the 2010s, Demings opposed constitutional amendments that would have legalized medical marijuana. 2014 and 2016

The Phoenix reached out to the Demings campaign by phone and email for two days this week, but did not receive a response. Calls to the phone number listed in the latest press release from the Demings campaign were answered by a recording that the person with the number did not have a voice mail system set up.

President Trump passed the 3rd Amendment

One prominent Florida Republican who supported the 3rd Amendment in 2024 was President Donald Trump.

“As I’ve said before, I believe it’s time to end the unnecessary arrests and incarcerations of adults for small amounts of marijuana for personal use. We also need to put smart rules in place, giving adults access to a safe and tested product,” Trump posted on Truth Social in September 2024. “Like Florida, I will vote YES on Amendment 3 in November.”

In that position, the president promised to work to make marijuana a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act if elected to the White House, which he did in an executive order in December.

The US Department of Justice announced last month that it would immediately move FDA-approved marijuana products, along with items regulated by a state medical marijuana license, under Title III. Medical cannabis falls under the category of controlled drugs that have a recognized medical use, such as Tylenol, and not Schedule I drugs, such as heroin and LSD, which have no medical use and a high potential for abuse.

This story was first published by the Florida Phoenix.

user photo Philip Steffan.

Planet 13 Holdings has appointed the Honorable Nancy Saitta and Leilani Bradford as independent directors, filling two newly created seats on the Board, effective April 24, 2026. Justice Saitta brings two decades of judicial experience, including service as Chief Justice of the Nevada Supreme Court. Ms. Bradford brings over 20 years of real estate financing and transaction structuring experience. Both appointments broaden the Board’s independent representation and deepen governance, law enforcement and real estate. Both directors have been appointed to the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Corporate Governance and Nomination Committee.

“Justice Saitta brings a depth of judicial and governance experience that few public company boards have direct access to,” said Bob Groesbeck, co-chairman and co-CEO of Planet 13. “His 20 years on the Nevada bench, including leadership on the state’s highest court, will strengthen our oversight as we operate in an industry where regulatory rigor and disciplined decision making are essential.”

“As a Las Vegas company, we are proud to welcome two outstanding members of our local community to the Board,” said Larry Scheffler, co-chairman, CEO and co-founder of Planet 13. “Ms. Bradford has spent more than two decades building a reputation for Las Vegas real estate, structuring complex transactions and developing innovative financial disciplines that will continue to directly improve our financial growth and transaction models. opportunities.”

© Planet 13

Judge Saitta served as a member of the Nevada Judiciary for 20 years, including from 2007 to 2016 and from 2007 to 2016 and from 2011 to 2012. from 1996 to 1998. Earlier in his career, he served as the Nevada State Attorney General and Children’s Advocate and practiced law in private practice. Since 2017, Saitta has served with Advanced Justice Resolution Management as a mediator, arbitrator, special master, consultant and private judge, and continues as a senior district judge for the Nevada Supreme Court. Justice Saitta received her JD from Wayne State University School of Law and her BA from Wayne State University.

Since 2005, Ms. Bradford has served as a principal and director of SHEQ Properties, a Las Vegas-based real estate company. While at SHEQ, he has played a key role in the sourcing, underwriting and structuring of transactions, particularly in the medical and professional property sectors, and developing the company’s Shared Equity Model, which provides ownership options to physicians and service providers in connection with long-term lease agreements. Prior to joining SHEQ, Ms. Bradford had a career in accounting and finance. He is a Certified Public Accountant and earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Nevada, Reno.

Opponents of marijuana reform have filed suit Federal cannabis rescheduling action announced by President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice last month—using a law firm in which a former Trump administration attorney general is a partner.

Prohibitionist organizations Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) and the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA) on Monday asked the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to review and set aside the cannabis redistricting action, saying they are “harmed” by the reform.

Under an action announced last month by Attorney General Todd Blanche, marijuana products covered by a state medical cannabis license were immediately changed from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Annex, as well as marijuana products approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). An administrative hearing scheduled for this summer will examine the broader rescheduling of cannabis, including for recreational products.

“The AG’s Reinstatement Order violates the regulatory requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 USC §§ 551 to 559, and section 201 of the CSA, 21 USC § 811, exceeds the Attorney General’s statutory authority under the CSA, and is otherwise arbitrary and capricious and lacks two statutory remedies against the claims.

Torridon Law is signed by PLCC attorneys, where former US Attorney General William Barr, who led the DOJ during Trump’s first term, is a partner.

SAM announced in January that it was Hiring Barr’s firm to fight cannabis rescheduling After Trump signed an executive order directing officials to quickly complete the process.

“SAM and NDASA respectfully request that the Court review and vacate the Order in its entirety, and that SAM and NDASA receive any other relief to which they may be entitled,” the new petition states.

The Department of Justice, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Blanche and DEA Administrator Terrance Cole are on the case.

SAM CEO Kevin Sabet said in a press release that the cannabis redistricting order “violates both law and science.”

“This order has given approval to a new Big Tobacco industry selling cookies, gummies and soda laced with potent marijuana,” he said. “The public health carnage caused by these products is not ‘medical’ and that word should never be associated with them. This is a fight for the next generation. We continue our fight to make federal marijuana policy a step forward in health and justice.”

Meanwhile, the House appropriations subcommittee last week Federal officials voted to block further steps to reschedule cannabis.

Last month, SAM and other plaintiffs filed a lawsuit to block a Trump administration program Certain hemp-derived products are covered by Medicare.

Read the full marijuana overhaul the case below:

Photo by Mike Latimer.