Y’all Politics caught up with David Singletary at 400 High Street aka the Mississippi Capitol, to discuss his run as an Independent for Governor of Mississippi in 2019. In the interview he explained what his platform includes, which largely focuses on the legalization of cannabis.

Singletary is a Jackson native. After graduating from high school he served in the Air force for six years. He received a Bachelor’s from Millsaps College and later went through the Masters program at USM Long Beach. He then owned and operated a hotel, Breakers Inn, on the coast for 10 years before retiring.

“I never thought I’d be in Mississippi trying to legalize cannabis. I never thought I’d be in Mississippi and have to run for governor to bring a new industry into this state,” said Singletary. “I surely thought my leadership had my best interest at heart. I’ve never had such a hard time getting people to do something good for themselves.”

Singletary said his run for governor stemmed from feeling unrepresented by those in leadership. He disagrees with the opposition to legalizing marijuana.

Singletary is no stranger to the Capitol already. He is well known for his brightly colored green suit patterned with marijuana leaves. This outfit loudly exclaims his main platform in this election, legalize cannabis. Singletary outlines several reasons in the interview for why marijuana should be legalized in Mississippi.

Big dave singletary for governor of Mississippi. The 420 friendly candidate. Legalize now then when I get to the governor’s mansion rocks pic.twitter.com/VbiQjkF2ju — Bud Hemp (@BudHemp1) July 17, 2017

“I’m bringing you a brand new six-billion dollar industry. Colorado is making over five-hundred million dollars a year in additional revenue from a new tax source,” said Singletary. In addition to revenue sources, Singletary said the use of cannabis for medicinal purposes could be helpful to families across the state.

He is of the opinion that Mississippians should not only have access to cannabis but the ability to grow and use on their own.

“We don’t need big pharma to control our cannabis industry for us. We need people that have sick children and sick family members able to grow their own to treat themselves without having to pay $5,000 a month for a prescription,” said Singletary. He personally suffers from chronic pain and was recommended by a doctor to seek out the legalization of cannabis.

Singletary says he plans to run a “grass roots” campaign, relying on the people of Mississippi to rally around his message. When asked what the response has been since he announced his campaign he said “mainly no response at all.” He said coverage of his run has been minimal since he does not have the campaign budget necessary to get the same kind of attention his Republican and Democratic opponents receive.

However, that has not discouraged him in his mission to ensure all Mississippians have access to legal marijuana.

“I’d say a vote for Singletary is a vote for progress. I know zero tolerance is not obtainable in this country because the American people are drug crazed and enjoy their drugs. The war’s [on drugs] been going on 100 years and we are no closer to ending the war,” said Singletary.

He believes it’s time to take a different approach to marijuana one he believes will promote progress to move the state forward.