(CNN) — More Americans think
that marijuana should be legalized
than those who want it kept illegal,
according to a new poll.
According to the Gallup poll, 58%
say that pot should be legalized,
the first time in Gallup polling
that a clear majority favor the
move. Thirty-nine percent oppose
legalization.
The 58% in favor of legalization is
far removed from the 12% who said
the same thing when Gallup first
started asking in 1969, and it’s up
10 percentage points since last
November. The increase comes
after a slight dip from when those
supporting legalization first hit half
the survey population, 50%, in
2011.
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The survey attributes much of the
pro-marijuana momentum to public
referendums last year in Colorado
and Washington state that made
pot legal. Among those surveyed,
38% admitted to having tried the
drug themselves.
Attorney General Eric Holder has
said the Department of Justice will
not seek to block the Colorado
and Washington laws .
Federal enforcement of marijuana
laws in the so-called “War on
Drugs” has declined under the
Obama administration. Justice has
issued guidelines to federal
prosecutors telling them to no
longer pursue mandatory-minimum
sentences against low-level
nonviolent drug offenders.
Most support for legalization comes
from Democrats, 65%, and
Independents, 62%. About one in
three Republicans, 35%, agreed.
The younger the respondent, the
more likely they were to favor
legalization: 67% for 18 to 29 year-
olds compared to 62% for those 30
to 49. and 56% for those between
50 and 64. Only those 65 and older
reported less than half in favor of
legalizing marijuana, at 45%.
The Gallup poll was conducted
October 3-6, with 1,208 adults
nationwide questioned by
telephone. The survey’s overall
sampling error is plus or minus
four percentage points.