ATLANTA — A newspaper poll shows a majority of Georgia voters want favorable action on casino gambling, medical marijuana and "religious liberty" as state lawmakers begin their 2016 legislative session.
The 40-day session begins at 10:00 Monday.
The poll conducted by the national firm Abt SRBI for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution showed 62 percent of registered voters favor legalizing casino gambling to support the HOPE scholarship, and 72 percent say Georgia should create a medical marijuana harvest and distribution system. Fifty-three percent believe lawmakers should pass a so-called religious liberty bill and 39 percent support "merit pay" for teachers.
The January telephone poll of 977 adult Georgians, including 853 registered voters, had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
The poll results were published over the weekend.
