| MANCHESTER, NH - August 28 - A new Zogby poll released today shows overwhelming support for legal access to medical marijuana among likely New Hampshire Democratic primary voters -- and that presidential candidates who support medical marijuana are likely to gain support.
Eighty-four percent of voters said they support changing federal law to allow patients to use medical marijuana without fear of arrest, with only 14 percent in opposition and two percent not sure. Of those who said the issue would affect their votes, medical marijuana supporters outnumbered opponents by nearly seven to one.
Although the poll showed former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean in the lead, the issue could present a major problem for him. When told that Dean had acted to block a medical marijuana bill in Vermont last year, 28 percent said they would be less likely to vote for him in the Democratic presidential primary, while only 10 percent said they would be more likely to support Dean.
Asked whether they agree more with Dean's position on medical marijuana or with that of medical marijuana supporters, only 15 percent backed Dean's claim that marijuana is not an effective medicine. Seventy-four percent said they agreed with medical marijuana supporters that marijuana is an effective medicine and that "we shouldn't be arresting people for the simple act of taking their medicine."
"This poll shows what we've known all along, that voters don't want cancer and AIDS patients jailed for using medical marijuana," said Granite Staters for Medical Marijuana (GSMM) Campaign Coordinator Aaron Houston. "Democrats who support protecting patients have much to gain and nothing to lose."
Zogby International conducted interviews with 501 likely January 2004 Democratic primary voters chosen at random in New Hampshire. All calls were made from Zogby International headquarters in Utica, New York, from Saturday, August 23, to Tuesday, August 26, 2003. The margin of error is ±4.5%. Slight weights were added to party, age, religion, and gender to more accurately reflect the voting population. Margins of error are higher in subgroups. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest percent and might not total 100.
Zogby's detailed report of the poll results on medical marijuana questions is available here.
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