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DeSantis Wants To Maintain Abortion Rights, Marijuana Is Below 60%

The governor's political future also depends, at least in part, on the proposals staying below the 60% required for approval.

John Kennedy
| Capital Office | USA TODAY NETWORK – FLORIDA

In the home stretch of the election, Gov. Ron DeSantis is focusing almost exclusively on two of the country's costliest campaigns, wasting millions of dollars in taxpayer money and a barrage of questionable claims against legalizing marijuana and restoring abortion rights in Florida.

Groups that spent on Amendment 3, which would allow recreational marijuana, and Amendment 4, which would allow abortion access, have raised more than $225 million in the last two years, putting them at the top of more than 150 ballot proposals presented to American voters on November 5th.

In the final hours of the campaign, TV, radio and digital platforms are full of advertising. The governor and first lady Casey DeSantis are central players in the campaign endgame and have appeared daily in recent weeks to defeat Amendments 3 and 4.

The governor's political future also depends, at least in part, on the proposals staying below the 60 percent support each needs for approval. If the measures pass, DeSantis' influence could take a hit in his final two years leading Florida. His term is limited and he will leave office in January 2027.

DeSantis defies Trump on marijuana

Former President Donald Trump supported the marijuana initiative that DeSantis is now trying to thwart. DeSantis is also drawing attention for mobilizing state resources to kill both measures, which only reached the vote after collecting about a million signatures from Floridians.

“No matter where you stand on the issue, this is still a democracy and in a democracy we don’t spend taxpayer dollars before a political issue is addressed,” said Republican Sen. Joe Gruters of Sarasota, a former chairman of the Florida Republican Party supports Trump.

Gruters said he opposes the abortion rights measure but derided DeSantis' amendment spending as “propaganda.”

The Amendment 3 campaign estimates that the governor spent $50 million in taxpayer money opposing the measure, funding 13,000 television spots, 5,000 radio ads and more. The campaign said the public money flowing to DeSantis for his anti-abortion rights efforts undoubtedly exceeds that amount.

According to an analysis by OpenSecrets, the nonprofit political money tracking website, the marijuana amendment has raised $125 million on both sides, with $93 million backed by Trulieve, the cannabis industry giant. It is the most expensive election affair in the country.

Amendment 4 supporters in Florida have donated $110 million, far more than the $10 million raised by opponents. According to OpenSecrets data, this could be the second most expensive proposal in the country to go before voters.

But the campaign spending reports are a snapshot in time, especially so close to Election Day when dollars are still flowing.

The president's spending has fallen Presidential television ad spending is down significantly in Florida, but the amendments raise big money

DeSantis administration is unfazed by criticism

Still, the DeSantis administration is unfazed by criticism for using taxpayer dollars on issues that many of those taxpayers helped get on the ballot.

“Critics say it's inappropriate, it's unusual to do something like that. I would say it's the state's responsibility to educate people about what they're voting for,” Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nunez said during a recent appearance in Clearwater.

The governor has spent virtually no time campaigning for Trump, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott or other Florida Republicans on the ballot. Instead, for example, DeSantis toured the state with doctors who opposed Amendment 4 alleging a series of deficiencies.

The measure would repeal state law banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, which DeSantis pushed through a compliant, Republican-controlled Legislature. If approved by voters, Amendment 4 would restore the approximately 24-week standard that was in place in Florida for nearly five decades before the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade repealed in 2022.

But DeSantis says Amendment 4 lacks definitions — even though a majority of the Florida Supreme Court approved the ballot language. He also says that abortion is allowed at any time and for any reason. This is misleading because Florida law defines fetal viability.

DeSantis also warns that any medical professional could perform abortions if the measure passes, even though Florida law requires doctors to perform the procedure separately.

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While DeSantis obscured what Amendment 4 would allow, he was harsh on whether the measure should even be on the ballot. His State Department, which oversees state elections, recently released a 348-page “preliminary” report alleging that fraudulent signatures helped push the proposal to the vote while petition collectors were illegally paid per signature.

DeSantis’ efforts are reminiscent of election denial

With the release of the report, which was clearly intended to undermine support for the abortion measure, some critics heard echoes of Trump's election denials, which the Republican presidential candidate is amplifying with baseless claims of voter fraud in battleground Pennsylvania.

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DeSantis' fight against Amendment 3 includes claims that marijuana smoking will be widespread and public throughout Florida. However, the governor fails to acknowledge that state smoking laws already impose some restrictions and that the Pro-Amendment 3 campaign supports the Legislature imposing additional limits if the measure is approved.

“We've seen more and more campaigns making exaggerated claims, demonstrably false claims or outright lies,” said Aubrey Jewett, a political scientist at the University of Central Florida. “It seems to be becoming more and more standard procedure.”

Jewett said DeSantis appeared to have adopted the tactics of Trump, who rejected his bid for the Republican presidential nomination but DeSantis later endorsed him.

DeSantis “is willing to push the boundaries of what is legal and go beyond the norms that have existed, so to speak, in Florida and American politics,” Jewett said.

“He has said he will use every lever of power a governor has to push his agenda to the extreme. And that's what he did. The use of state resources to combat these two voting changes is just the latest example,” he added.

Claims that Amendment 4 is on the ballot fraudulently fit this Trump-like pattern, voting rights advocates say. The signatures were verified by election officials and the measure was certified for the ballot in January by Secretary of State Cord Byrd, a DeSantis appointee.

“Undermining election integrity appears to be part of the Republican playbook,” said Brad Ashwell, Florida director of All Voting is Local, a nonpartisan national voting rights organization. “The common themes we see are complaints that non-citizens are voting, that there are people who shouldn't be there, and that vote counting machines are not trustworthy or are being hacked in some way.

“It appears to be a coordinated message from the top down,” he added.

John Kennedy is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network's Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @JKennedyReport.

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