Trenton, NJ: After making the legalization of marijuana a core issue in both his primary and general election campaigns, Democratic candidate Phil Murphy has claimed victory in the New Jersey gubernatorial election over Republican Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno.
In fact, in his primary victory speech, Phil Murphy proclaimed his desire to sign a marijuana legalization bill within his first 100 days in office.
“Candidates across the country should take notice, as Phil Murphy won the Governor’s seat soundly because of, not in spite of, his open and vocal support for legalizing marijuana – a position supported by 65% of New Jersey voters and 64% of Americans nationwide,” said NORML Executive Director Erik Altieri, “NORML looks forward to working with Governor-Elect Murphy and other stakeholders in the state to end the disastrous policy of marijuana prohibition and to implement the moral, economic, and scientifically sound policy of legalization and regulation in the Garden State.”
Polling data released this week by Predictwise/Pollfish Survey revealed that a 65% of New Jersey voters support legalizing marijuana outright.
Currently in New Jersey, a possession conviction of anything under 50 grams of marijuana can carry a sentence of 6 months in jail and a $1,000 fine. The ACLU-NJ found that police make a marijuana possession arrest in New Jersey on average every 22 minutes and that black New Jerseyans were three times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites, despite similar usage rates.
great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! maybe pa. will be next!!
A rabid prohibitionist has been replaced by a good guy! One more brick of prohibition removed from the wall.
Equally great, according to NJ.com:
“Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, who controls which bills the 40-member Senate debate and vote on, said his goal was to get the measure passed within 100 days of the Murphy administration.” [That measure is Recreational Legalization]
The good guys won this election in Jersey, hope we repeat the victory in NM next year, where our prohibitionist GOP Gov Susana Martinez will be stepping down after 8 years.
I truly hope more candidates for public service take this to heart, and remember they are elected to serve the the public that elects them.
Hopefully this election victory will signal to other politicians that supporting marijuana legalization is an asset rather than a liability.
It’s great to see New Jersey move from the hardcore prohibitonist that is Chris Christie, to pro-legalization governor-elect, Phil Murphy. Congrats to soon to be Governor Phil Murphy and all of New Jersey!
Couldn’t agree more with you Joey. As it turns out, as we can all see from this race, openly supporting the movement is a GOOD thing for politicians. Hopefully more will follow suit in the days to come. After all, it is what their constituents, the American people, want. So let’s give them what they want!
I just HAD to turn to Fox News to see their reactions. Curious, there were stories on Trump’s visit to Asia, a story on the recent gun slaughter in Texas . . . a commercial . . . another story on Trump’s Asia visit . . . another commercial . . . pundit’s discussing Trump’s visit to Asia . . . Pence discussing the Texas slaughters . . . another commercial . . .
Perhaps one of you Fox News watchers should call the station and let ’em know there were a couple of elections tonight . . . I’m sure they’d want to know.
The Democratic sweep-silence over at Russian-State-Fox-Media speaks volumes, doesn’t it? Fox covers Democratic victory like an internal sex scandal.
I was deeply skeptical over a pro marijuana reform Democratic victory because of my previous research on the Republican Crosscheck Program that handed Trump and the GOP all three branches of government last year:
http://www.kssos.org/forms/communication/canvassing_kansas/dec13.pdf
Virginia is one of 29 states with this corrupt voter caging program:
http://www.thebestdemocracymoneycanbuy.com
450,000 Democratic voting last names like Jackson or Martinez were eliminated in Michigan alone where Trump only “won” by less than 15,000 votes.
But this is why I like participating on this blog; I get my continuing education not only on evolving marijuana reform but on the drifting river banks of freedom as well:
A court case in Michigan called the United States Student Association Foundation v. Land found certain aspects of the Crosscheck Program in violation of the 1993 Voter Registration Act. But the program still remains in effect, and Trump and Kobach (funded by the Koch Brothers and John Paulson) are still trying to make the corrupt program go national. To stop them we (NORML, ACLU) have to attack this as a First amendment violation, because our right to vote is not guaranteed by the Constitution.
With millions of minority votes purged, hundreds of thousands in Virginia alone, do you realize what kind of Democratic backlash had to happen for ALL the Dem candidates to win their elections in Virginia? Clearly marijuana reform isn’t the only reason why Democrats are landsliding elections. This is one of those moments in American history when party identity shifts… a moment in history when our American identity reclaims what is being tread and shat upon by a few wealthy billionaires. And marijuana policy and our collective freedom rests in the balance.
The greater point I was trying to make is that willfully ignorant Republican voters are either tuning out or changing the channel both on their selection of media coverage and voter identity. Fox and the GOP built an empire out of scorched earth but theyve run out of earth to scorch… so theyre burning themselves. And they trained their viewers to follow the $#!+ show so they cant ignore their own defeat without losing loyalty, which is precisely whats happening. Besides, marijuana reform as it relates to the opioid epidemic, quality of life and mental illness is THE most important subject in American society and Fox and the GOP just think they can ignore it? Get ready for a landslide in next year’s elections.
Julian,
I mentioned in another post to you that I believe that Virginia’s use of paper ballots may have had something to do with the Dems’ big wins there. You can’t hack paper ballots (or at least it won’t be as easy).
The next time the Dems get control of the House, notwithstanding the GOP’s sleazy voter suppression tactics, I am going to urge my Dem Reps to begin criminal hearings on all of these election shenanigans. We should not live in a society where politicians are allowed to game the system, to render votes meaningless, in order to secure political victory.
I believe this is a serious threat to our Democracy and people should go to jail for it. No more of this “friends across the aisle” BS. The GOP held 17 hearings on Hillary and Benghazi; let’s hold 17 hearings on election fraud and voter suppression in Michigan and Virginia and Florida and Ohio and . . .
Julian, you’re always off the mark. I told you when trump got elected there’d be no mm arrests, and i was right. If Marijuana is the only issue you care about you’re either very sick, which is understandable. Or you’re a pothead.either way, if people committing to demonize half the country ( like dem politicians, Hillary and Hollywood ) legalize mj won’t mean anything because we won’t have a country. Something to think about fellas.
CNN, MSNBC, Charlie rise, GMA, are all fake news.
This is great not only for the residents of New Jersey, but for New Jersey tourism as well. Plan your next summer vacations at the Jersey Shore, and enjoy all the benefits of the beautiful Garden State!
Already purchasing my plane tickets.
Having cannabis legal in nj would be huge. Lots of people would flow over from nyc and philly just to partake. My only gripe is that we will not be allowed to cultivate at home.
Well done New Jersey and Virginia! Glad to see that sanity prevailed for once!
This is fantastic for New Jersey! I love Jersey!
But . . .
the clowns running the government in Pennsylvania will be sending tax dollars from cannabis revenue out of state when Pennsylvania itself is hurting for revenue. New York, too. WTF! Lancaster County politicians are even against medical marijuana. They have no idea where to get money to fill the budget gap so they borrowed $1.5 billion against future revenue tobacco company settlement, expanded gambling, and voters just passed a referendum to eliminate 100% property/school taxes on a primary residence. Now Harrisburg needs another $ billion. These fiscally responsible Republicans in control of the state legislature don’t have a better way of coming up with all that money. Senator Mike Folmer and his kind of Republicans are all for full legalization, as is Senator Daylin Leach, a Democrat. Tell Turzai to keep his effing mouth shut and stay the f out of the way. Tell everyone to get the f-out of the way, hold their noses and vote for it. That means you Rs from Lancaster County, too. Heartless klootzakken.
http://lancasteronline.com/news/local/pennsylvania-ballot-question-focuses-on-property-taxes/article_62e87ab0-c3d7-11e7-b047-2b096d54527b.html
So once his 100 days are up with Murphy in office and it becomes recreational? 21 and older?
This means so much to people like my grandmother who are suffering from dimentia. There are so many people who need relief right now.
Someone needs to make a Putt n Puff n put Trump’s golf course outta business.
Finally! All I’ll have to do is cross a bridge to get to NJ! About damn time! Now if only Delaware would legalize it…
It is way overdue
its not what either you or i want,its what the voters want,this is what our country was founded on.if the voters want it,then it should be made so,i think its about time.look up why it was made against the law to begin with.it had to do with business,not morality.so i think this is the way the government should be working,for the people,not the interests of big business.
I love it when people get together and share opinions. Great website, stick with it!
Next,the world ?
I thought Chris Kristie was Governor of Jersey ?