The rollercoaster ride for Florida’s recreational cannabis advocates took a sharp, downward turn last week. Just days after the Florida Attorney General’s office announced that the “Adult Personal Use of Marijuana” initiative had failed to meet signature requirements, the Florida Supreme Court has officially declined to consider the measure’s ballot language.
This essentially closes the primary judicial avenue for the Smart & Safe Florida campaign to reach the 2026 General Election ballot—at least for now. Although the campaign insists the fight isn’t over, the state’s highest court has closed the procedural door. Now, the only potential lifeline lies in navigating a complex web of lower-court litigation, though chances remain slim.
Florida Supreme Court’s Dismissal of Recreational Cannabis Ballot Language
On Tuesday, February 4, the Florida Supreme Court issued an order dismissing the case regarding the recreational cannabis amendment. The decision was nearly unanimous, with a 6-1 vote. Justice Jorge Labarga was the sole dissenter.
The dismissal effectively cancels the oral arguments that were scheduled to take place on February 5. The court did not issue a written opinion detailing the merits of the amendment’s language. Instead, the dismissal was a procedural response to a filing by Attorney General James Uthmeier.
Why the Case Was Dropped
Florida law tasks the Supreme Court with reviewing proposed constitutional amendments. The Court must ensure the ballot title and summary are clear and do not violate the single-subject rule. This review happens automatically once a campaign gathers a certain number of signatures.
However, Attorney General Uthmeier filed a “Notice of Dismissal” stating that the review was no longer necessary. His reasoning was straightforward: because the Florida Secretary of State declared that the initiative had failed to meet the required 880,062 verified signatures by the February 1 deadline, the amendment was ineligible for the ballot regardless of its language.
In his brief to the court, Uthmeier noted that he was required to withdraw the request for an advisory opinion because the measure had not qualified. The court agreed, dismissing the case.
The Signature Gap: By the Numbers
The core of the dispute lies in the verified signature count. To qualify for the 2026 ballot, an initiative must collect signatures equal to 8% of the votes cast in the last presidential election.
- Required Signatures: 880,062
- Official State Tally (as of Feb 1): 783,592
According to the Florida Division of Elections, the Smart & Safe Florida campaign fell short by nearly 100,000 signatures. Because the February 1 deadline is statutory, the Secretary of State, Cord Byrd, issued a notification that the signatures had “expired” and the initiative had failed.
Smart & Safe Florida Pushes Back
Despite the Supreme Court’s dismissal and the Secretary of State’s declaration, organizers behind Smart & Safe Florida are not conceding. Their position is that the state’s official count is inaccurate due to a backlog in processing and what they view as unlawful invalidation of petitions.
A spokesperson for the campaign released a statement noting that the Supreme Court’s order “does not decide the merits” of the ballot language. They emphasized that the order allows the court to review the language if the campaign wins its pending disputes over signatures.
The campaign claims to have submitted more than 1.4 million signatures in total. The campaign argues that if officials counted all valid signatures and restored those invalidated under new, controversial rules, they would easily surpass the threshold.
The “Premature” Declaration
When news first broke that no amendments had qualified, Smart & Safe Florida called the Secretary of State’s announcement “premature.” They pointed out that county Supervisors of Elections were still processing petitions and that the state dashboard lags behind real-time counts.
However, the state maintains that the deadline is hard and fast. Attorney General Uthmeier stated publicly that “even with all the fraud and forgery,” the initiative failed to garner enough support. This rhetoric alludes to the state’s aggressive investigation into petition gatherers, which has already led to arrests for alleged fraud.
Ongoing Legal Battles
While the Supreme Court has stepped away, the battle for the 2026 ballot is now being fought in lower courts. There are two primary legal challenges that could theoretically change the math.
The “Inactive” Voter Purge
Smart & Safe Florida is challenging a directive that invalidated tens of thousands of signatures from registered voters deemed “inactive.” Inactive voters are typically those who have not voted in the last two general elections but remain on the registration rolls. The campaign argues these are still eligible Florida voters and their signatures should count.
The Non-Resident Restriction
The campaign is also fighting provisions of HB 1205, a law passed in 2025 that restricts out-of-state petition gatherers. A federal judge previously ruled that banning non-residents from collecting signatures restricts political speech, but the legal battle over which signatures to throw out continues.
If the campaign wins these lawsuits, they hope to force the state to restore enough signatures to cross the 880,062 threshold. If that happens, they would then need to petition the Supreme Court to reopen the case regarding the ballot language.
Opposition Claims Victory
While the legal team for Smart & Safe continues to litigate, opponents of legalization are claiming a definitive victory for the 2026 cycle.
Mark Wilson, President and CEO of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, released a statement suggesting that the failure to qualify proves a lack of public support. “Even after spending $205 million, Big Weed still hasn’t convinced Floridians,” Wilson stated via Florida Politics.
The DeSantis administration has also taken a victory lap, with the Attorney General posting on social media that Floridians can “breathe free air for another election cycle,” signaling the administration’s continued strong opposition to recreational legalization.
Even with all the fraud and forgery, the latest weed initiative couldn't garner enough public support to make the ballot.
— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) February 4, 2026
The Florida Supreme Court appropriately just dismissed the case. Floridians can continue to breathe the free air for another election cycle.
What This Means for the Florida Cannabis Industry
For cannabis operators and advocates, the path to adult-use in Florida has narrowed significantly. The 2026 ballot was viewed as a prime opportunity, and the failure to secure a spot after the Florida Supreme Court dismisses the recreational cannabis ballot language despite massive financial investment is a setback.
The Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the case removes the sense of inevitability that often surrounds these initiatives once they reach the high court. Now, the initiative is effectively on life support, sustained only by the possibility of a court ruling that forces the state to recount or restore invalidated petitions.
If the current disqualification stands, Florida will not vote on recreational cannabis until at least 2028. This delay would maintain the current status quo of a medical-only market for several more years.
For now, all eyes turn to the remaining lawsuits. Unless a judge intervenes to reverse the Secretary of State’s determination, the door to 2026 has been shut.
