How Marijuana Legalization is Becoming the Key Factor in Upcoming Virginia Elections

October 1st, 2019 Virginia’s Attorney General Mark Herring hopped on social media and tweeted out his support for the legalization of recreational marijuana in his state of Virginia. This level of transparent support caught the attention of media and is now becoming the new norm for traditionally conservative states.

The tweet read, “Virginians know we can do better. It’s time to move toward legal, regulated adult use,” Herring also retweeted a study which showed that well over half of Virginians agree with his pro-cannabis position.

In Virginia, marijuana reform has routinely become stalled session after session. Yet, on Tuesday, November 5th, 2019 the election results for the House and the State Senate shook matters up for Virginia politics.

Virginia Democrats won both the House of Delegates and the State Senate. All 140 legislative seats were on the ballot, opening huge doors for potential candidates. After voting, results showed that the Democrats took full control of the Virginia state government for the first time since 1994.

Voters in the state also elected several reform-minded prosecutors, including Parisa Dehghani-Tafti and Steve Descano, who’s pledged that his office would not prosecute low-level cannabis offenses. Buta Biberaj also won her bid for a prosecutor position in the commonwealth and agreed that nobody should be incarcerated for marijuana possession.

The new composure and ideology of the legislature look to bode well for the potential passing of future cannabis reform.

Herring’s support for legalization and his infamous tweet led to him becoming the first officially declared Democratic candidate for Governor in the 2021 gubernatorial election. His support makes sense considering his constituent’s obvious opinion and the fact that Washington D.C. has essentially legalized cannabis, along with other neighboring states West Virginia and Maryland enacting medical marijuana laws.

The retweeted study Herring subsequently posted after his first tweet was published in September again by the University of Mary Washington. It stated that 61% of Virginians support the legalization of recreational marijuana, while 34% oppose legalization. All other respondents said they would rather not answer.

This is a noticeably large rise in opinion from a past UMW study that was conducted in 2017, just two years prior, showing only 39% of Virginians supported legalization.

This highlights the new progressive attitude of Virginia.

“The latest (2019) Mary Washington survey demonstrates, to quote Bob Dylan, ‘the times they are a-changin’ here in the Old Dominion,” stated Stephen J. Farnsworth, professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington and is also the director of its Center for Leadership and Media Studies.

Overall, the recreational use of marijuana is now more widely accepted. This allowed for marijuana reform to gain true voting influence when modern politicians are campaigning. Especially in Virginia, where the people are fed up with current marijuana policies and laws.

Such politicians are suddenly having to adapt. Those looking for votes have had to become more upfront, knowledgeable, and transparent on their views surrounding marijuana legalization. This is why the topic is already being brought up for the upcoming 2021 gubernatorial elections.

Stephen Farnsworth said he believed legalization is several years away, but, as we all know, there is never a precise timeline and it could change suddenly.

“Winning the support of younger voters can be key,” he added.

“80% of Virginia’s youth are in favor of recreational marijuana”, Farnsworth said.

Mark Herring, who’s seen as the Democratic front-runner for the 2021 gubernatorial elections, has long voiced his support for the decriminalization of marijuana.

Micheal Kelly, Herring’s director of communications, said via email that the attorney general believes “Virginia needs to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, take action to address past convictions, and a move towards legal and regulated adult use in Virginia.”

Those are powerful words as 90% of marijuana-related arrests in Virginia last year being for possession alone. Arrests for marijuana possession have increased 115% from 2003 to 2017, according to a press release from the Virginia attorney general’s office.

On top of this amazing rise in minor possession arrests, first-time marijuana convictions in Virginia have risen 53% from 2008 to 2017, with the law and legal enforcement costs estimated to exceed $81 million a year.

The system and “War on Drugs” has failed Virginians, as it has for the rest of the American constituents, and they’re tired of it. They’re calling upon their political leaders and those leaders are feeling the pressure. It will be interesting to see the results of the 2021 gubernatorial election and how Virginia marijuana legislation plays out in the near future.

Cheers,

J.Robert Fallon III