Over the years, the use of cannabis in the United States has increased acceptability. To ensure more liberal approach towards cannabis and its industry, it is imperative to look into the positions and attitudes of the different US presidential candidates in the coming elections towards this powerful plant.

Senator Bernie Sanders

Senator Bernie Sanders has stated clearly that the legalization of cannabis is one of his major objectives. He plans to effect this within his first 100 days in office with executive action. He also intends to expunge and vacate all previous convictions related to marijuana. Also, he intends to keep Big Tobacco off the cannabis market and has mapped out a plan to make sure that tax revenue gathered from marijuana goes to the people and communities plagued the most by the War on Drugs.

Donald Trump

Donald Trump is not just a presidential candidate in the United States; he is the current president. He has stated to be “100%” in support of the idea of legalization of medical cannabis during his campaign sessions prior to his 2016 election. However, he has generally been silent on the issue since he was elected. One thing is suggestive of his genuine stance and that is his appointment of now-former Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Notably, Sessions was probably the fiercest opponent of the marijuana legalization movement in Capitol Hill. Nevertheless, nothing is still fully established about Donald Trump’s stance.

Senator Elizabeth Warren

Senator Elizabeth Warren has a similar attitude as Sanders toward Cannabis. She has also claimed that, if elected as the president of the United States, she would leverage on executive action to strike marijuana off the list of controlled substances. However, this comes as no surprise, because she has co-sponsored a decent amount of cannabis reform bills such as the STATES Act and CARERS Act.

Joe Biden

A lot of people who know the former Vice President well enough will understand the fact that his position on Cannabis has become significantly liberal over the years. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, he used to be one of the strongholds behind the War on Drugs.  Nevertheless, even though his campaign spokesperson told CNN in 2019 that he is in support of the idea of letting states make their own decisions, he has never said anything about changing federal policy.

Michael Bloomberg

The former New York City Mayor used to crack down on violations against cannabis. Between 2002 and year 2013 that he was in office, there was a huge rise in the arrests for cannabis-related activities but he was always voting proposals that canvassed for fines and court summonses instead of arrests for possession of Cannabis in small amounts.

Pete Buttigieg

Buttigieg who used to be a Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, also claims to work with and support lawmakers in Congress for the legalization of Cannabis at the federal level. Just like Bernie Sanders, Buttigieg has talked about the social injustice occasioned by the War on Drugs and he intends to tackle those problems head-on if elected into office.