You have the power. In your hand at your polling place, in your booth and on your ballot, you can change the world. You can bring peace to the planet, regain your rights, frame your future, and advance the plant. That’s what your vote will do if cast properly.

Via hundreds of email messages and television commercials, you probably know about the importance of this year’s election. It’s both preidential and local. It’s both candidate and issue based. And it’s pivotal: who and what wins will chart the course of the future or become the dust of history.

Can cannabis influence the electoral outcome? You bet. A number of analyses produced over the years prove pot’s power. Take this report from the 2008 presidential election:  “The ‘marijuana vote’ comprised about 13 million voters in 2008, with around 7.8 million making up the ‘medical marijuana vote.’ Each equaled respective 9.8 percent and 5.9 percent totals of the 2008 vote.” Per the analysis, thesepercentages are comparable to those for minorities and other demographics. In other words, cannabis can marginally influence election utcomes – margins of just a few percentage points can determine for whom we vote, who serves in Congress, and who occupies the Whitehouse.

And don’t forget, these candidates become deciders. Will marijuana be legalized federally? Will the plant be rescheduled? Will the industry be able to utilize banks? Will penalties be removed, and convictions expunged? Will research be encouraged or banished? Will the U.S. finally end the War on Drugs?

Given that almost 90 percent of U.S. adults believe that marijuana should legal for both medical and adult use, this article will look at the Presidential race and where the candidates stand on cannabis. The good news is that electoral contenders from both parties have expressed interest in reform.

It should be noted that specific red flags show a politician’s true colors. They reveal their opposition and yearning for prohibition, for example, when they claim cannabis can be laced with fentanyl (it cannot), when they cite ever increasing potency, and when they seem overly concerned about ancillary items like smell. Look for these flags when considering your candidates.

So, who is your presidential pick?

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ANALYSIS

The lists below detail comments and activities by the four presidential/vice presidential candidates as they pertain to cannabis/marijuana over the last 15 years. For the Democratic Party, Kamala Harris is running for president, with Tim Walz as her vice-presidential running mate. For the Republican Party, Donald J. Trump is seeking his second presidential term, with J.D. Vance as vice president.

What do their comments concerning cannabis reveal?

For the first time in history, both contenders for the nation’s top job (Kamala Harris and Donald Trump) support marijuana reform, including legalization, banking, and expungements. This means, in theory, that once elected, we have a very good chance of ending prohibition and the War on Drugs once and for all. However, one candidacy tilts further into reform than the other.

The Harris/Walz ticket clearly commands the most support, particularly Tim Walz. His unabashed advocacy dates back a decade to his terms in Congress and as Minnesota governor where he promoted medical marijuana research for veterans, established an adult use market in Minnesota, expunged criminal records, protected the hemp industry, added qualifying conditions, permitted home grow, and endorsed social equity. Does it get any better? Yes! Kamala Harris’ record similarly supports federal legalization, rescheduling, and pardoning.

The same can’t be said for the Trump/Vance ticket. While Donald Trump recently came out in favor of cannabis – saying he will vote for Florida’s adult use ballot initiative after meeting with the sponsor’s CEO – his so-called support can be short lived. In 2018, his administration engineered a plan to secretly take down the marijuana industry. He “strongly” condemned cannabis as “bad” and panned Colorado’s emerging market as wrought with problems. However, after meeting the CEO, Trump changed his tune, as he often does. His comment conflating marijuana with fentanyl revealed his “true colors.”

It gets little better with JD Vance. His vote against the federal Safe Banking Act, his “no” vote last year on Ohio Issue 2, his anxieties about smell, and his continued association of marijuana with fentanyl reveal a prohibitionist at heart.

In the end, the marijuana voters find themselves at a long-sought fork in the road. For whatever trepidation they may have about a female president, a “liberal” agenda, or a weak economy, they have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reject prohibition and finally enact sensible cannabis policy. Remember the “marijuana vote”? That demographic margin that can narrowly decide election outcomes? It’s time for cannabis consumers to flex their electoral muscles, vote their conscience and self-interests, and mark the presidential election of 2024 as the turning point toward a more just, fair, and equitable society – particularly for cannabis consumers.

P.S. It should be noted that only the Democratic Party has a clause about cannabis in its party platform. The Republican Party does not.

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Per Their Words and Deeds: Presidential Positions on Pot

KAMALA HARRIS – Democratic Party candidate for President

Background: U.S. Vice President, U.S. Senator (CA), California Attorney General, San Francisco District Attorney

• ~2003-2010. As San Francisco District Attorney, reduced prosecution of marijuana offenders. Formed cannabis advisory group.  Discussed ways for city-authorized medical marijuana gardens and dispensaries to be identified and protected. Proposed registration of growers and dispensaries with her office to preclude prosecution. Set a policy for San Francisco prosecutors to not file cannabis charges unless there were serious violations.

• 2010. Spoke out against Proposition 19, the failed 2010 California ballot measure to legalize and regulate marijuana.  
• ~2010. As California Attorney General, leveraged her position to support a package of medical marijuana dispensary legalization and licensing bills in the state legislature.
• 2017. Ran for governor on a promise to "create a system of regulation and taxation for adult-use marijuana.”
• 2018. As U.S. Senator from California, stated, "we need to decriminalize marijuana nationwide."
• 2019. Cosponsored the Marijuana Justice Act with Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) to legalize federally. Did not receive a Senate vote.
• 2024. On 4/20, she stated, nobody “should have to go to jail for smoking weed,” and “we must continue to change our nation’s approach to marijuana.” 
• 2024. Touted administration’s move to reschedule cannabis on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
• 2024. Met with marijuana pardon recipients for a roundtable event at the White House in March, where she said behind closed doors that “we need to legalize marijuana.”
• 2024. “I just think we have come to a point where we have to understand that we need to legalize it and stop criminalizing this behavior.” All the Smoke podcast:

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TIM WALZ – Democratic Party candidate for Vice President

Background: Minnesota Governor, U.S. Representative (MN), National Guardsman, high school social studies teacher, football coach

Minnesota Governor

• 2017. As a gubernatorial candidate, stated, "We have an opportunity in Minnesota to replace the current failed policy with one that creates tax revenue, grows jobs, builds opportunities for Minnesotans, protects Minnesota kids, and trusts adults to make personal decisions based on their personal freedoms." Southern Minnesota News

• 2018. Instructed state agencies to start preparing for marijuana legalization, saying he wanted them to "put all of the building blocks in place." Marijuana Moment
• 2021. Signed bill to expand Minnesota’s medical marijuana program and allow patient access to smokable cannabis products and edibles. Added a number of qualifying conditions.
• 2022. Signed bill to establish permanent protections to allow Minnesota hemp businesses to legally market certain cannabis products – including foods and beverages infused with CBD and other cannabinoids that can be sold at bars.
• 2023. Signed a bill to legalize marijuana, making Minnesota the 23rd state to enact the reform.
• 2023. Signed a bill to allow medical cannabis caregivers to grow plants for their patients.
• 2023. As part of legalization, Minnesota officials expunged more than 57,000 records for marijuana convictions.
• 2023. Passed the Clean Slate Act to automatically seal records for non-violent, non-felony crimes beginning in January 2025.
• 2023. Signed bill to allow doctors to certify medical cannabis patients for any condition they see fit.
• 2024. Added provisions to the law to permit recreational cultivation to begin immediately and to make military veterans to be eligible for cannabis social equity business licenses.
• 2024. Negotiated with Minnesota tribal nations to make the tribes major players in the marijuana industry.
• 2024. Praised President Biden’s mass pardons for people with federal marijuana possession offenses, calling them “critical step forward,” even though he supports legalization coupled with expungements of prior cannabis records.
• 2024. Supports cannabis social equity to right the wrongs of the drug war.

U.S. House of Representatives (2007-2019)

• 2014. Voted  in favor of amendments to protect state industrial hemp programs from Justice Department interference.
• 2015. Voted in favor of spending bill amendments that protect all state marijuana programs from federal interference each time they came to the floor.
• 2017. Criticized the VA under Trump for failing to undertake a study of the therapeutic benefits of cannabis for veterans suffering from PTSD and chronic pain.
• 2018. Critical of then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s move to rescind Obama-era guidance that urged prosecutorial discretion regarding state marijuana programs.

• 2018. Sponsored legislation to promote medical marijuana research for veterans, first ever reform bill to clear a congressional committee.

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Donald J. Trump – Republican Party candidate for President

Background: Former U.S. President (2017-2021), entrepreneur.

• 2015. “I’d say it's bad. Medical marijuana is another thing, but I think it’s bad and I feel strongly about that."  Sean Hannity interview.
• 2015. Stated that “marijuana legalization "is bad" because it had caused "some big problems" in Colorado.
• 2015. “In terms of marijuana and legalization, I think that should be a state issue, state-by-state. … Marijuana is such a big thing. I think medical should happen – right? Don’t we agree? I think so…” Washington Post interview.
• 2016. “There is another problem. In Colorado, the book isn’t written on it yet, but there is a lot of difficulty in terms of illness and what’s going on with the brain and the mind and what it’s doing. So, you know, it’s coming out probably over the next year or so. It’s going to come out.” Bill O’Reilly interview
• 2016. “I have to see what the medical effects are and, by the way – medical marijuana, medical? I’m in favor of it a hundred percent. But what you are talking about, perhaps not. It’s causing a lot of problems out there.” Bill O’Reilly interview
• 2018. Soon after taking office, Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, appointed by Trump, rescinded the Cole Memo, which barred Justice Department officials from interfering in  states where marijuana is legal.
• 2018. With Session at the helm as Attorney General, Trump administration attempted to engineer a behind the scenes take down of the nascent marijuana industry.
• 2018. “… it's hard to know where the president will end up. He famously agrees with whichever person he most recently spoke to.” GQ article
• 2024. “… no one should grieve a loved one because they died from fentanyl laced marijuana.” Truth Social post         
• 2024. Supports Biden administration’s efforts to make marijuana a Schedule III drug.
• 2024. Will vote in favor of the adult use ballot initiative on the ballot in Florida.
• 2024. "As I have previously stated, I believe it is time to end needless arrests and incarcerations of adults for small amounts of marijuana for personal use." Truth Social post.
• 2024. Met with Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers to discuss cannabis and the legalization initiative on the fall ballot in Florida. Trulieve donated $70 million to the campaign.
• 2024. “As President, we will continue to focus on research to unlock the medical uses of marijuana to a Schedule 3 drug, and work with Congress to pass common sense laws, including safe banking for state authorized companies, and supporting states rights to pass marijuana laws, like in Florida, that work so well for their citizens.”  Truth Social post

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J.D. Vance – Republican Party candidate for Vice President

Background: U.S. Senator (Ohio), venture capitalist, Marine veteran, author.

• 2022. "A lot of times … look at the underlying charge — it wasn’t just that they smoked a joint, it’s that they smoked a joint and then beat an elderly woman over the head with a pistol." X post
• 2023. Thinks cities in states that have legalized recreational marijuana like Denver and San Francisco have become "open air drug markets."
• 2023. Voted against Safe Banking Act, claiming it "would have opened up access to banking resources for fentanyl traffickers and others."
• 2023. … "a big frustration that I have [is that] you take your kids downtown Cincinnati to go to a restaurant, and you walk by, like, five people who are stoned. It smells terrible.” Reason.com
• 2023. "That's why I'm a "no" on Issue 2. I want people to not bring this everywhere that kids walk around, play. I want to be able to go to my job. I want to go to do normal things without being slammed in the face with the smell of weed." Ideastream Public Media
• 2024. Accused Vice President Kamala Harris of failing to stop marijuana and fentanyl disguised as Nerds candy and other popular brands that appeal to children from coming across the border.
• 2024. Claims “marijuana bags” are being laced with fentanyl, … [and] that youth, including his own kids, can’t experiment with cannabis or other drugs without risking fatal overdoses.
• 2024. “I'm not a fan of recreational marijuana … I think that where you've seen that legalized you see youth usage rates go up, you see traffic fatalities go up.” Politico

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Democratic Party Platform on Marijuana

“No one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana. Sending people to prison for possession has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit. Those criminal records impose needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities, disproportionately affecting Black and brown people. President Biden took historic action to end this failed approach by pardoning people convicted federally for using or possessing marijuana. He has called on governors to use their pardon power to do the same for state-level offenses. And his Administration is taking a major step to reschedule cannabis, so it's no longer classified as more dangerous than fentanyl or methamphetamine.”

Marijuana/cannabis/hemp is not mentioned in the Republican Party Platform.

Marijuana/cannabis/hemp is not mentioned in Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025.

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Mary Jane Borden is a best-selling author, skilled graphic artist, insightful analyst, and award-winning cannabis activist from Westerville, Ohio. During her 40-year career in drug policy, she co-founded seven cannabis-oriented groups, co-authored four proposed constitutional amendments, lobbied for six medical marijuana bills, penned over 100 Columbus Free Press articles, and has given hundreds of media interviews. She is one of the Courage in Cannabis authors, with articles in both editions. Her artwork can be viewed at CannabinArt.com and she can be reached at maryjaneborden@ gmail.com.