Health Care

Will 2020 Be the Year of Marijuana Legalization?

2019 was a big year for marijuana legalization and all indicators point to 2020 being an even bigger one. Once Colorado and Washington got the ball rolling by approving marijuana legislation back in 2012, many other states have since made legalization an important issue on the ballot and some have even legalized marijuana – at least for medicinal purposes. 

Support for Marijuana Legalization Has Been Steadily Growing

There are currently sixteen states that are actively considering putting marijuana legalization before voters this coming year. Some of them are even considering making marijuana legal for recreational purposes like tobacco and alcohol, while others are just focusing on medicinal cannabis. 

“Since the first adult-use legalization ballot initiative victory in 2012, the marijuana reform movement has successfully maintained its momentum,” Matthew Schweich, deputy director of the Marijuana Policy Project, said. “For four elections in a row, there has been a legalization victory at the ballot box, and the upcoming election could deliver more victories in one day than ever before.”

This doesn’t mean that all of these efforts will get the support they need. Sixteen states looking at marijuana legislation doesn’t mean that it’s about to become legal in sixteen states. What it means is that these are states where voters and lawmakers are getting serious about putting legalization on the ballot. These are places where we could see it happen. 

Even outside of those sixteen states that are questioning their drug policies, lawmakers across the country are considering bills that aim to legalize marijuana in some form or another. 

Marijuana Legalization and the 2020 Presidential Election

Marijuana advocates are expected to push harder on getting Congress to change cannabis laws too. There was momentum in that field in 2019 when the House of Representatives approved a marijuana banking bill. Another key victory came when legislation to legalize cannabis on the federal level and fund programs to help repair the damage caused by the war on drugs made it past the committee level. These victories lay the foundation for full marijuana legislation, a foundation that will be built upon in 2020. 

Perhaps the most important thing factor involved in 2020 being the year of marijuana legalization is the upcoming presidential election. Public support for legalization grows by the day and voters always turn up when marijuana legalization is on the ballot. We expect at least one presidential candidate will include legalization in their campaign platform. 

Reactionary Times News Desk

All breaking news stories that matter to America. The News Desk is covered by the sharpest eyes in news media, as they decipher fact from fiction.

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