Most NC voters support legalization of recreational and medical marijuana, WRAL News Poll shows

A majority of North Carolinians feel both medical and recreational marijuana should be legalized in the state.

Posted 10:00 p.m. Apr 12, 2022 — Updated 12:21 p.m. Apr 13, 2022

Cullen Browder

, WRAL anchor/reporter

Most North Carolina voters think medical and recreational marijuana use should be legalized in the state, according to results of a WRAL News poll released Tuesday.

SurveyUSA’s scientific poll found 57% of voters felt recreational use of marijuana should be legalized and 72% felt the medical use of marijuana should also be legal.

Only 18% of those polled felt medical marijuana should remain against the law and 32% of voters polled said recreational use should remain illegal.

SurveyUSA randomly selected 2,500 North Carolina adults from April 6-10, of which 2,068 are registered to vote in the state. The group conducted the interviews in several regions of North Carolina, including Charlotte and west, the Greensboro area, the Raleigh area, southern and coastal communities. Lucid Holdings LLC of New Orleans selected a random sample of participants.

Results have credibility intervals of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points for the question about medical marijuana use and 2.7 percentage points for the question about recreational marijuana use.

The poll also found:

75% of Democrats polled felt medical marijuana should be legalized, 15% of Democrats it should remain against the law and 10% weren’t sure.
63% of Democrats felt recreational marijuana should be legalized, 26% felt it should remain against the law and 12% weren’t sure.
64% of Republicans felt medical marijuana should be legalized, 26% felt it should remain against the law and 10% weren’t sure.
45% of Republicans felt recreational marijuana should be legalized, 45% felt it should remain against the law and 10% weren’t sure.

Raleigh-based Modern Apoltheca owner Eric Stahl sells a range of hemp-based product to help people sleep petter or deal with pain or anxiety without pharmaceuticals.

"My hope and dream is to be a medical marijuana dispensary here in North Carolina," he said.

Stahl said he was not surprised by the results of the WRAL poll.

“This shift has been taking place for a long time,” Stahl said. “We’ve been seeing it.”

Stahl says the challenge is convincing state lawmakers.

“The general view of North Carolina representatives and senators is that I have nothing but potheads coming through here," Stahl said.

It’s unclear what state lawmakers will do with Senate Bill 711, which calls for the legalization of prescription marijuana for a range of serious medical problems, including cancer, multiple sclerosis, post-traumatic stress disorder and to help end-of-life pain or nausea.

In August 2021, SB 711 remained in the Rules and Operations of the Senate Standing Committee. Lawmakers could resume consideration of the legislation when they convene on May 18. The legislature is then set to adjourn on June 30.

SB 711 would let doctors prescribe marijuana for the following conditions:

Cancer
Epilepsy
HIV/AIDS
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
Crohn's disease
Sickle cell anemia
Parkinson's disease
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Multiple sclerosis
Cachexia or wasting syndrome
Severe or persistent nausea "related to end-of-life or hospice care," or in someone who is bedridden or homebound
A terminal illness when the patient's remaining life expectancy is less than six months
Any condition when the patient is in hospice care