Virginia voters show overwhelming support for medical marijuana, divided on recreational use

A survey conducted by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute shows Virginia voters support the legalization of medical marijuana by an overwhelming majority of 84 percent, with younger Democrats being more likely to support both medical and recreational use than older Republicans.

The poll was conducted Mar. 19 - 24. Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,288 voters, with live interviewers calling land lines and cell phones, reporting a margin of error of +/- 2.7 percentage points.

"More than four in five Virginians favor allowing the use of marijuana for medical purposes, although on this question and others involving the drug, support for its use is a bit lower than in some other states where we conduct surveys," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll.

While the majority of Virginians support medical marijuana, the state is still divided on whether or not recreational use of the plant should legalized, with support for legalizing marijuana for personal use at 46 percent, 48 percent opposed.

"When it comes to legalizing marijuana for recreational use Virginians are divided,” the report says.

The poll also evaluated Virginians’ support of same-sex marriage, finding the state favors gay marriage by a narrow margin, with women being more likely than men to support same-sex unions; the same generation and party gap was apparent as with marijuana.

"Support for same-sex marriage in Virginia shows a similar pattern to support for use of marijuana: The younger you are, the more Democratic you are, the more likely you are to support both of these social issues," Brown said.

[QU Poll]