Fact check: How many North Carolinians support medical marijuana?

A sponsor of the bill that would legalize medical marijuana in North Carolina says the effort is supported by "over 75%" of state residents. PolitiFact checks his claim.

Posted 8:37 p.m. Jul 9, 2021 — Updated 8:47 p.m. Jul 9, 2021

Paul Specht

, PolitiFact reporter

North Carolina lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow physicians to prescribe marijuana for some medical issues.

North Carolina is among a minority of states that haven’t legalized any form of marijuana.

A key state Senate committee recently gave preliminary approval to Senate Bill 711, which would allow cannabis as a treatment for cancer, epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, PTSD and other comparable debilitating conditions.

Ahead of the meeting, Democratic state Sen. Wiley Nickel claimed that most North Carolinians support medicinal marijuana.

“Even though over 75% of the state supports medical marijuana we still have an uphill battle for final passage in the Republican controlled Legislature,” tweeted Nickel, who’s raising money to run for Congress.

Is support for medicinal marijuana really that high?

Not consistently.

Available polling

Generally speaking, national polls show rising support for marijuana legalization. In 2018, PolitiFact reported that support for legal marijuana rose from 35% to 62% in only ten years.

Gallup, which has been polling on the issue since 1969, found last year that a record high 68% of Americans support full legalization. And earlier this year, the Pew Research Center found that 91% of Americans believe marijuana should be legal in some form.

North Carolinians, meanwhile, haven’t been polled many times on whether medical marijuana should be legalized. While available polls show support for the issue, Nickel is slightly exaggerating their enthusiasm.

NC Senate panel approves medical marijuana bill

In 2015, a Public Policy Polling poll found that 69% of 845 North Carolina registered voters supported marijuana for medicinal use. The margin of error was 3.4%.

In 2017, an Elon University poll found that 80% of 506 North Carolina voters said in a live-caller telephone survey that they support the idea. The margin of error was 4.36%.

In 2020, a Nexstar/Emerson College poll found that 73% of 717 registered voters approved of medical marijuana. The margin of error was 3.6%.

In 2021, another Elon University poll found that 73% support among 1,455 North Carolinians who were polled in an online survey. The poll’s “credibility interval” was 2.7%.

These numbers are high, but not consistently above 75% like Nickel said. Nickel’s office, for its part, cited a News & Observer story that described medical marijuana support in the state as being “nearly” 75%.

David McLennan, a political science professor who runs the Meredith College Poll, says he’s skeptical that more than 75% of North Carolinians support medicinal marijuana.

“Seems to me that North Carolinians generally favor medical marijuana being legalized,” McLennan said. “The support—at least as indicated by the four polls—suggests that support is pretty consistent and does not appear to be growing.”