Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler this week told the Baltimore Sun that he feels the legalization of cannabis is going to happen, and that as governor he would ensure laws are implemented “the right way” if such a change were to happen while he is in office.

Gansler joins the two other Democrat forerunners for the state Governor’s office with a pro-pot stance, state Del. Heather Mizeur and Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown. Mizeur has campaigned openly on a legalization platform and Brown says that he would work towards decriminalizing up to an ounce of pot.



Gansler also agrees that decriminalization would be a good start to the process and also said he favored legalizing medical cannabis with a doctor’s recommendation. Maryland currently has a pseudo-medical marijuana law on the books, though it’s so restrictive that patients won’t be using legal ganja any time in this decade at the current pace things have been going.

While Gansler’s position is certainly a welcome one, some question whether he is simply playing lip service to the growing majority of Americans who favor legalization.

Even if that is the case, Tom Angel, director of the Marijuana Majority, says that it is a really good sign.

“I think the fact that all three candidates seeking the Democratic nomination have found it beneficial to tout their marijuana-reform credentials speaks volumes about how far the discussion on this issue has come in just a few short years,” Angell said. “Just a couple election cycles ago, we’d consider ourselves lucky to get one candidate in a race who was willing to publicly say that maybe we should take another look at the marijuana laws, and those comments would often come from those who some might call ‘fringe candidates.'”

If you want to hear what Gansler said for yourself, check out this video from the Baltimore Sun (right around the 24-minutes):

