NAPLES, Fla. — A Florida advocacy group is working to collect signatures for a recreational marijuana ballot measure in 2026, after a similar initiative narrowly failed last year by just four percentage points.
Smart & Safe Florida needs just 880,062 signatures to get its measure on the 2026 ballot, which would legalize recreational marijuana for adults across the state if approved by voters.
WATCH AS PEOPLE AND BUSINESSES IN COLLIER COUNTY WEIGH ON THE MEASURE:
According to unofficial state data as of Monday, at least 4,600 people in Collier County and 675,307 statewide have already signed the petition to bring the issue up for another vote in 2026.
The initiative is facing opposition from within the cannabis industry itself. Nick Garulay, CEO and founder of My Florida Green, which helps patients access medical marijuana, calls the recreational push a money grab that could harm the medical marijuana program.
"Our biggest fear is just turning all of our hard work into a joke because the medicinal benefits of medical marijuana are undeniable, they're incredible," Garulay explained.
"And it's a money grab. We're stepping on the heads of the medical patients and basically bastardizing the medical program which was passed as a constitutional amendment back in 2016," Garulay said.
The effort is also facing legal challenges. Smart & Safe Florida filed a complaint accusing Governor Ron DeSantis' administration of trying to improperly block the marijuana measure from getting on the ballot.
State election officials have since moved to advance the measure, triggering the process for the Florida Supreme Court to review it.
A separate challenge over signatures is also underway.
Some residents support legalization with proper rules. Part-time Naples resident David Hertzman said marijuana should be regulated like other drugs.
"If you're going to make it legal, make it legal and control it and make sure that people use it responsibly like anything else," said Hertzman who is originally from Canada where marijuana is legalized.
Pending any court decisions, the recreational marijuana initiative has until February 1st to secure enough valid signatures to appear on the ballot in November 2026.
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