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Florida Sends Marijuana Amendment to Supreme Court Review as AG Moves to Dismiss Suit

Pending litigation and a looming signature deadline cloud the measure’s path to the 2026 ballot.

FILE - Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd testifies about noncitizen voting in a hearing to the Committee on House Administration on Capitol Hill, May 16, 2024 in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell, File)
FILE - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a news conference Aug. 12, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)

Overview

  • State elections officials on Nov. 17 submitted the recreational marijuana proposal to Attorney General James Uthmeier and verified required district thresholds, triggering Florida Supreme Court review.
  • Uthmeier asked justices to dismiss Smart & Safe Florida’s mandamus petition as moot after the letters the group sought were issued.
  • Smart & Safe Florida has 675,334 valid signatures, short of the 880,062 required by Feb. 1, 2026 to qualify for the ballot.
  • A separate Leon County case challenges an October directive from Division of Elections Director Maria Matthews instructing supervisors to discard roughly 200,000 petitions lacking the full text in mailings.
  • State lawyers say the secretary has authority to require uniform petition forms and display of full text, while the sponsors argue mailed packets complied by directing voters to a webpage with the full text.