Majority Of Americans Say Marijuana Isn’t ‘Dangerous’ As Trump Decides On Rescheduling, New Poll Shows

A new poll shows that a majority of Americans don’t consider marijuana
dangerous, though most do think consuming cannabis increases the likelihood
that people will transition to using more dangerous drugs.

The survey from Rasmussen Reports, widely viewed as a conservative polling
firm, asked several questions dealing with cannabis and other drug-related
topics as President Donald Trump considers a marijuana rescheduling
proposal.

One top-line finding is that 53 percent of respondents said that cannabis
use is either “not at all dangerous” or “not very dangerous,” while 42
percent said it was either “somewhat dangerous” or “very dangerous.”

Republicans were more likely to say marijuana was dangerous (54 percent
total) compared to Democrats (35 percent total).

The survey—which involved interviews with 1,305 American adults from
September 21-23—also inquired about public opinion on the gateway drug
theory, asking: “How likely is it that marijuana use leads to the use of
more dangerous drugs?”

Despite the majority perception that marijuana isn’t dangerous—and the fact
that polls consistently show majority (and increasingly bipartisan) support
for legalizing cannabis, 51 percent of respondents said it was “very
likely” or “somewhat likely” that marijuana could lead to more dangerous
drug use. Another 42 percent said that it was “not very likely” or “not at
all likely.”

Most Still Don’t See Marijuana as Dangerous

A majority of Americans don’t think it’s dangerous to use marijuana,
despite recent research findings on the subject. Full story is in the
comments… pic.twitter.com/t5dwKZF1Zb

— Rasmussen Reports (@Rasmussen_Poll) September 26, 2025

Rasmussen also examined opinions around the broader “problem of drug abuse”
in the U.S., asking people to rate their sense of the current status of the
issue.

Just 5 percent said the situation is getting “better,” 36 percent said it’s
“worse” and 39 percent said it’s “about the same.”

The poll, which has a margin of error of +/-3 percentage points, is one of
the latest temperature checks on American sentiment toward drug policy as
Trump weighs a proposal to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III
of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

And while a leading prohibitionist group, Smart Approaches to Marijuana
(SAM), recently claimed a poll they commissioned demonstrated majority
opposition to rescheduling, a policy change that Trump endorsed on the
campaign trail, the result flies in the face of multiple other national
surveys showing support for reform that goes beyond rescheduling.


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Another recent survey from the Coalition for Cannabis Policy, Education,
and Regulation (CPEAR), which was conducted by the firm Forbes Tate
Partners, showed that seven in 10 American voters want to see the end of
federal marijuana prohibition—and nearly half say they’d view the Trump
administration more favorably if it took action on the issue.

A poll released in June that Marijuana Moment partnered on with the
cannabis telehealth platform NuggMD showed that a majority of marijuana
consumers disapprove of the Trump administration’s actions on cannabis
policy to date, but there’s also a significant willingness among users to
shift their position if the federal government opts to reschedule or
legalize marijuana.

Earlier this year, meanwhile, a firm associated with Trump—Fabrizio, Lee &
Associates—also polled Americans on a series of broader marijuana policy
issues. Notably, it found that a majority of Republicans back cannabis
rescheduling—and, notably, they’re even more supportive of allowing states
to legalize marijuana without federal interference compared to the average
voter.

The post Majority Of Americans Say Marijuana Isn’t ‘Dangerous’ As Trump
Decides On Rescheduling, New Poll Shows appeared first on Marijuana Moment.