Little more than three months ago, Floridians appeared poised to overwhelmingly pass a constitutional amendment to legalize medical marijuana.
But Tuesday, after a barrage of negative ads by opponents, the idea came crashing down.
According to the results, 57.5 percent of voters backed the proposed amendment — known as Amendment 2 — that would have allowed patients to receive the substance. But constitutional amendments require approval from 60 percent of voters to pass.
The pot proposal was one of three constitutional amendments on the ballot Tuesday.
Voters easily passed an amendment that will lead to increased funding for land conservation and other environmental projects. The results showed a nearly 3 to 1 margin, with 74.93 percent in favor and 25.07 percent against.
Voters also rejected a third amendment that involved the appointment of Supreme Court justices and appeals-court judges. It didn’t even receive a simple majority — 47.9 percent voted in favor, while 52.1 percent disapproved.
The medical-marijuana initiative was spearheaded by Orlando attorney John Morgan, who is known throughout the state for his ubiquitous Morgan and Morgan law-firm television ads and billboards.
Opponents said the amendment included loopholes that would lead to a wide-open pot industry that would go far beyond helping patients who suffer from debilitating illnesses.
While the medical-marijuana initiative was highly controversial, the land-conservation amendment drew grumbling from Republican legislative leaders and some business groups but appeared to have no organized opposition.
The proposal, which was Amendment 1 on the ballot, will require the state to dedicate a portion of real-estate tax revenue over the next 20 years for environmental preservation. The proposal will generate billions of dollars from the existing tax, with the money going to buy or restore areas crucial to Florida’s water supply, such as the land around springs, and natural systems that have been despoiled, such as the Everglades..
The third amendment on the ballot was placed there by Republican lawmakers and involved a complicated question about the appointment of future Supreme Court justices and appeals-court judges. It received only about 48 percent support.