Cannabis Consumption Rates By Political Party

Cannabis consumption rates by state broadly follow political views within the country, with states that voted Democratic in the 2012 Presidential election having significantly higher consumption rates than those which voted Republican.

Consumption rates represent the percentage of the population which have used cannabis in the past month.

The average consumption rate for Republican states is 6.8% of the state population, whereas Democratic states have an average consumption rate of 9.5%. Notable outliers on the Republican side include Montana and Alaska, who respectively have 10.4% and 11.85% consumption rates – highest among Republican-leaning states. Conversely, among Democratic states, usage was lowest in Iowa and New Jersey, at 5% and 6.3% respectively.

Notably, the perceived risk of consuming cannabis is also highest in Republican-leaning states, which may be a strong driver of the lower usage rates.