- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis claimed cities with legalized cannabis "have ended up regretting it."
- Democrat Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried is running against DeSantis for governor in 2022.
- Fried has openly acknowledged that she uses medical marijuana and vows to legalize it if elected.
Despite suggesting he is in favor of its decriminalization, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis cited the "putrid" scent of cannabis as a reason he may remain opposed to fully legalizing its use in the state, Politico reported.
"I think a lot of those other areas that have done it you know have ended up regretting it," DeSantis said Wednesday during a press conference in Tallahassee, according to Politico. "I could not believe the pungent odor that you would see in some of these places and I don't want to see that here. I want people to be able to breathe freely."
Democrat Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, who has publicly acknowledged her use of medical marijuana, is running to unseat DeSantis in 2022 and has incorporated marijuana legalization into her platform. Florida voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2016 that legalized the drug's medicinal use.
"You can still go to jail for weed in Florida because Ron DeSantis doesn't like the way it smells!?!" Fried said in a tweet on Wednesday. "Sounds like Dictator Karen wasn't having much fun at Yale and Harvard so he's taking it out on the rest of us."
—Nikki Fried (@NikkiFried) January 26, 2022
As DeSantis gears up for the gubernatorial race, Democrats have filed at least 10 marijuana-related bills for the 2022 legislative session, Florida Politics reported.