A poll from the University of North Florida (UNF) released on Monday shows former Gov. Charlie Crist beating Gov. Rick Scott by a hair while a constitutional amendment permitting medical marijuana use in Florida facing voters in November is in excellent shape.
The poll of registered voters has Crist, the favorite for the Democratic nomination despite spending most of his political career as a Republican, with 34 percent with Scott right behind him with 33 percent. But 34 percent of voters are on the fence, with 17 percent saying they would back someone else besides Scott and Crist and 17 percent still undecided.
The poll shows Scott is above water with 45 percent of those surveyed approving of the governor while 39 percent disapprove of him. A UNF poll from October had 49 percent approving of Scott while 42 percent disapproved of him.
A proposed constitutional amendment to legalize medical marijuana that Floridians will vote on in November has an excellent chance of passing according to the poll.
The poll shows 74 percent of registered voters plan to support the amendment while 22 percent say they plan to vote against it. For a state constitutional amendment to pass, it needs 60 percent of voters.
The poll does show Floridians continue to oppose legalizing marijuana for recreational use by adults. While 11 percent of those somewhat oppose legalizing marijuana for recreational use, 46 percent say they strongly oppose it. But a quarter of those surveyed -- 25 percent -- strongly support legalizing marijuana while 16 percent somewhat support it.
Florida continues to back its Stand Your Ground law according to the poll. More than two-fifths of those surveyed -- 41 percent -- say they strongly support Stand Your Ground while 21 percent say they somewhat support it. Less than a quarter -- 22 percent -- strongly oppose the law while 7 percent somewhat oppose it.
One of Scotts chief legislative goals in 2014 is to roll back $400 million in vehicle registration fees. The poll finds solid support across the Sunshine State for Scotts proposal.
The poll shows a clear majority -- 55 percent -- of those surveyed back Scotts proposal with more than a third -- 38 percent -- strongly supporting it and 17 percent somewhat supporting it. The proposal garners the opposition of 35 percent with 19 percent strongly opposing it and 16 percent saying they somewhat oppose it.
The poll of 507 registered voters in Florida was taken from March 6-16 and had a margin of error of +/- 4.35 percent.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com.
