Washington, DC: Legislative efforts to legalize marijuana for medical and adult purposes in several states received a boost following this week’s midterm election results.
In Pennsylvania, Democrats flipped the Senate. That chamber had long opposed legislative efforts supported by the House and the Governor to regulate the adult-use cannabis market.
Similarly, in Wisconsin, Democrats won control of the legislature. The state’s incoming governor, David Crowley, has also publicly endorsed “full legalization.” Currently, Wisconsin is among the nation’s leaders in marijuana possession arrests and it remains one of the few states lacking significant medical cannabis access or legal protections. Prior legislative efforts to reform the state’s marijuana laws had been stonewalled by Republican leadership.
In North Carolina, Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives. For years, Senate-backed legislation legalizing medical cannabis access had failed to receive a vote in that chamber.
In Iowa, Governor-elect Rob Sand has called for regulating marijuana like alcohol. In Kansas, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Cindy Holscher campaigned on legalizing marijuana. Holscher holds a slight lead in the Governor’s race with over 99 percent of votes counted. Georgia’s newly elected Governor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, suspended pre-employment drug screenings for public employees while serving as Mayor of Atlanta.
In Texas, both Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick lost their reelection bids. Patrick had championed efforts to impose stricter criminal penalties on certain hemp and marijuana products. Incoming Gov. Gina Hinojosa has expressed support for “giving the people of Texas a direct right to vote on the future of THC.” The state will also have a new Attorney General next year. Former state AG Ken Paxton, who lost his bid for a US Senate seat, had previously sued several cities to rescind voter-approved marijuana deprioritization ordinances.
Additional information on Election Day results is available from NORML’s Election Central.