Federal Judge Gives Florida Marijuana Legalization Campaign A Win Over State’s Ballot Initiative Restriction Law

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August 25 2025

Federal Judge Rules in Favor of Florida Cannabis Legalization Campaign for 2026 Ballot

A federal judge has delivered a significant victory to a Florida campaign seeking to place a cannabis legalization initiative on the state’s 2026 ballot, granting “complete relief” from provisions of a law signed by Governor Ron DeSantis (R) that imposed strict restrictions on signature gathering.

In response to a motion for a preliminary injunction from the Smart & Safe Florida cannabis campaign, a U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida judge ruled on Thursday that the state’s law forces plaintiffs to “choose between curtailing their First Amendment rights” or “risk invalidation of verified petitions, crippling civil penalties, and further enforcement actions.”

While the law signed by DeSantis in May was not explicitly aimed at the cannabis initiative, supporters expressed concerns that it could jeopardize the already complex and costly process of collecting enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. The law would prevent non-residents and non-citizens from collecting signatures for ballot measures.

Background on the Restrictions

Governor DeSantis pitched the idea to lawmakers earlier this year, advocating for changes to the petition-gathering process that could complicate citizen-led reform efforts across various issues. However, following a legal challenge from advocacy groups, including the cannabis campaign, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker determined that certain restrictions were unlawful.

In a prior ruling last month, as reported by The Tallahassee Democrat, the judge upheld much of the law but concluded in his latest decision that prohibiting non-residents from gathering signatures imposed an unacceptable “severe burden on political expression.”

The court stated that Smart & Safe Florida “demonstrated that it is substantially likely to succeed on the merits of its First Amendment claim challenging the State Attorneys’ role in enforcing the residency requirement.” The ruling further noted:

“The challenged provisions work an unconstitutional restriction as applied to Plaintiffs’ speech by prohibiting non-citizen and non-residents from gathering signed petitions by silencing the individual non-citizen petition circulators who are Plaintiffs in this case, and by preventing the organizational Plaintiffs’ members or employees who are non-residents or non-citizens from engaging in the core political speech of petition circulation.”

Judge Walker emphasized that the threat of enforcement against the cannabis campaign creates “a cognizable chill on Smart & Safe’s non-resident petition circulator’s speech, which directly injures Smart & Safe, as sponsor of the cannabis ballot initiative.”

Progress of the Cannabis Campaign

As of now, the Smart & Safe Florida campaign has collected over 75 percent of the required signatures to qualify for the 2026 ballot. The campaign began gathering signatures in January, making steady progress in its second attempt to enact a constitutional amendment for cannabis legalization after a 2024 version fell short.

According to the Florida Division of Elections, activists have gathered approximately 50,000 additional valid signatures over the past month, bringing the total to 661,327. To secure ballot placement, the campaign needs 880,062 valid signatures from registered voters and must meet a threshold of signatures from at least 8 percent of voters in at least half of Florida’s 28 congressional districts. Currently, the campaign has exceeded this threshold in five districts and is close in several others.

In June, the state confirmed that the campaign had collected enough signatures to trigger a fiscal and judicial review of the 2026 initiative, which will assess its legal eligibility and economic impact.

Governor DeSantis’ Opposition

Governor DeSantis has expressed skepticism about the initiative’s prospects, stating in February that the measure is in “big time trouble” with the Florida Supreme Court and predicting it will be blocked from reaching voters in 2026. He argued:

“There’s a lot of different perspectives on cannabis. It should not be in our Constitution. If you feel strongly about it, you have elections for the legislature. Go back candidates that you believe will be able to deliver what your vision is on that.”

Despite DeSantis’ concerns, the campaign has already met a key milestone, prompting the state to conduct a judicial and financial review to inform voters about the measure’s potential impact.

Changes in the 2026 Initiative

The Smart & Safe Florida campaign, which previously received tens of millions of dollars from cannabis industry stakeholders like Trulieve, filed the revised 2026 initiative shortly after the 2024 version failed despite an endorsement from President Donald Trump. The updated measure incorporates changes to address criticisms from opponents, including:

• A provision explicitly stating that “smoking and vaping of cannabis in any public place is prohibited.”

• A section asserting that the legislature must approve rules regulating the “time, place, and manner of the public consumption of cannabis.”

Public Support and Polling

A February poll showed strong bipartisan support for cannabis legalization, with 67 percent of Florida voters in favor, including 82 percent of Democrats, 66 percent of independents, and 55 percent of Republicans. However, a conflicting poll by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, an opponent of legalization, found 53 percent support among likely voters—below the 60 percent threshold required for enactment.

Another poll of Florida Republican voters indicated that only 40 percent would vote in favor of the legalization proposal.

Additional Context

In a separate development, DeSantis signed a GOP-led bill in June that imposes further restrictions on ballot initiatives, potentially complicating efforts to place the cannabis measure on the 2026 ballot. Additionally, a Florida GOP senator recently claimed that the campaign “tricked” President Trump into supporting the 2024 measure by misleading him about its provisions.

Before endorsing the 2024 initiative, Trump met with Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers and a GOP state senator who supports reform. While Trump endorsed the initiative and expressed support for federal rescheduling and industry banking access, he has been silent on cannabis issues since taking office. However, the CEO of Scotts Miracle Gro recently claimed that Trump has privately committed to advancing the rescheduling process in multiple conversations.

Impact on Medical Cannabis Patients

In another development, some medical cannabis patients and caregivers in Florida could face revocation of their state cannabis registrations under a new bill signed by DeSantis. SB 2514, a broad budget bill addressing health-related matters, includes a provision directing the Florida Department of Health (DOH) to cancel registrations of patients and caregivers convicted of—or who plead guilty or no contest to—criminal drug charges.