Earlier this month (and today), news spread about the Biden-Harris Administration firing, suspending, and penalizing staffers for marijuana use. And as of today, New York became the 15th state in the U.S. to legalize recreational marijuana. Given the nationwide conversations about marijuana legalization, CivicScience checked in on how Americans feel about the substance and its broader acceptance in society. 

CivicScience survey data from the first quarter of 2021 show that nearly 70% of U.S. adults (ages 21 or older) reported that they’d support the legalization of marijuana in their respective states.

Trending time view data show that support has risen by five percentage points between 2018 and 2020. With the understanding that 2021 has only seen its first quarter, year-to-date data for 2021 show similar numbers to 2020.  

More recent CivicScience data from Q1 of 2021 show that roughly 20% of U.S. adults 21 and older use cannabis at some frequency. This means that even though less than 1 in 5 use it, most people are on board with legalizing regardless of their usage. 

Cannabis usage hasn’t changed over time either – at least not in the last two years. Rates of usage have been consistent since 2019 with the caveat (again) that we are only a few months into 2021. 

As more states and residents push for legalization, CivicScience will continue to track sentiment.