Record 59% Now Want Pot to Be Legalized

Support for the legalization of marijuana movement has just hit a record high, with a whopping 59% in favor, according to a recent poll by YouGov for the Huffington Post. This latest hike builds on the 55% who supported legalization, according to a poll taken last year. The numbers included 51% who want weed to be taxed and regulated like alcohol, and another 8% who believe it should be legalized, but not taxed and regulated. Only 26% of respondents said that marijuana shouldn't be legalized, with another 15% unsure. Support for medical marijuana is even higher: 64% of respondents favor permitting doctors to prescribe small amounts of pot, with 23% opposed. Support for medical marijuana is highest among people between 45 and 64 years of age— 74% of whom were in favor, compared with 56% of younger adults. Other polls from the likes of Gallup and the Pew Research Center reveal lower numbers in support of legalization—at 50% and below. But HuffPost claims the difference is accounted for by its methodology: instead of polling by phone, the YouGov poll was carried out online and offered a third—and most popular—option of legalize and tax and regulate.