Seven out of ten Pennsylvania likely voters support legalizing marijuana, according to a new poll. That includes majority backing for the reform across party lines.
When asked whether they “support or oppose the regulation and taxation of legal cannabis for use by adults 21 and older in Pennsylvania,” 69 percent of respondents said yes.
Support was strongest from Democrats, at 72 percent, but also includes 67 percent of Republicans and 64 percent of independents.
The survey, which was commissioned by the Pennsylvania Cannabis Coalition (PCC) and conducted by Susquehanna Polling & Research, also found majority support for legalizing marijuana across every age and racial demographic, as well as each geographic area across the state.
Support for ending cannabis prohibition increased even further when respondents were asked about legalization legislation including provisions for “strict consumer safety standards, product testing requirements and strong protections to prevent youth access.” In that case, a total of 72 percent of voters said they would be more likely to back the reform.
The poll also asked about hemp, with 89 percent of respondents saying they would support legislation that “restricts sales of intoxicating THC products to licensed, state-regulated businesses and removes these unregulated products from gas stations and convenience stores.”
“Pennsylvanians are sending a clear message: they want a system that is safe, regulated, and responsible,” Meredith Buettner Schneider, executive director of PCC, said in a press release on Monday. “Right now, intoxicating THC products are being sold with little oversight, often in places that lack proper safeguards. That is unacceptable.”
The survey involved interviews with 705 likely Pennsylvania voters from March 7–19, 2026, and has a margin of error is ±3.7% at a 95% confidence level.
The results come as Pennsylvania’s governor is increasing pressure on lawmakers to send him a bill to legalize marijuana in the state, saying that doing so would generate new revenue that could be invested in key programs.
“While some in Harrisburg claim we can’t afford to make bigger investments in our kids, public safety, and our economy, know this: If we legalized and regulated adult-use cannabis, we’d bring in $1.3 BILLION in revenue for our Commonwealth over the first five years,” Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) said in a social media post last week.
“Those are dollars that can be invested back into our people and our communities,” he said. “Stop with the excuses. Let’s get this done.”
Earlier this year, the governor again included marijuana legalization in his budget request to lawmakers, but so far the legislature has not enacted the reform.
The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives last year passed a bill to legalize marijuana and put sales in state-owned dispensaries, but the Republican Senate majority has criticized that plan while also not advancing a cannabis legalization model of its own.
The state’s Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) reported in February that legalizing cannabis in Pennsylvania would generate nearly half a billion dollars in annual revenue by 2028, an estimate that is a significantly larger cash windfall compared to projections from Shapiro’s own office.
With a proposed 20 percent wholesale cannabis excise tax, 6 percent state sales tax for retail and licensing fees, IFO said the governor’s legalization plan would generate $140 million in tax revenue in the first year of implementation from 2027-2028 and increase to $432 million by 2030-2031.
That’s a much higher revenue estimate than what the governor’s office put forward in the latest executive budget. According to his office’s analysis, legalization would generate about $36.9 million in tax dollars in its first year from a 20 percent wholesale tax on marijuana—rising gradually to $223.8 million by 2030-2031.
A recent Quinnipiac University Poll also found that a majority of Pennsylvania voters say they’re ready for the state to legalize adult-use marijuana.
In February, a coalition of drug policy and civil liberties organizations urged Shapiro to play a leadership role in convening legislative leaders to get the job done on cannabis legalization this session.
Last month, the Senate Law and Justice Committee amended and approved a bill to create a Cannabis Control Board (CCB) to oversee the state’s medical marijuana program and intoxicating hemp products and that could eventually regulate adult-use cannabis if it is legalized in the state.
“This polling shows strong support for policies like SB 49 that would eliminate the unregulated hemp intoxicant market and provide much needed consumer protections,” Buettner Schneider said of the new survey results on Monday.
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