COLUMBUS, Ohio – While Ohioans overwhelmingly approve of the legalizing marijuana use for medicinal purposes, support for decriminalizing pot for recreational use is considerably smaller.
The same Quinnipiac University poll shows support for same-sex marriage, or opposition to it, breaking down along generational lines and a lean toward keeping abortion legal, at least in most cases.
Ohio voters said they support the use of medical marijuana by an 87-11 percent margin, with approval from at least 78 percent of every group.
Only 51 percent approved of allowing adults to legally possess small amounts of marijuana for personal use while 44 percent were opposed.
Men supported personal marijuana use 59-37 percent while women were opposed 51-44 percent. The highest percentage of those in favor was among 18-to-29-year-old voters (72%) while 65 percent of those voters 65 years or older opposed it.
Nearly half of voters (47%) said they believe marijuana is equally as dangerous as alcohol, while 14 percent say marijuana is more dangerous and 36 percent say it’s less dangerous.
When it comes to the question of same-sex marriage, there are significant gender, age and partisan divisions, the pollsters said.
While, overall, voters support same sex marriage 50-44 percent support is highest among Democrats and independent, women and younger voters. Opposition is highest among Republicans and older voters with men divided.
“Given that younger voters support same sex marriage almost 3-1, it would seem to be just a matter of time,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said.
Abortion was not an entirely black-and-white issue, with the largest number of voters saying only that they think it should be legal or illegal “in most cases.” Those favoring legal abortion in most cases outnumbered those thinking it should be illegal 34-27 percent. Those who though it should be legal in all cases (19%) was larger than those who favored a total ban (14%).
The poll has a margin of error of +/- 2.7 percentage points.