GOP Concern About Marijuana As A Gateway Drug: Will It Shape Policy And Public Perception Ahead Of 2024 Election?
The marijuana legalization question is up in the air with recent polls showing a slight decline in public support for policy change, contrasting with the stronger backing seen in previous years. With the U.S. presidential election approaching, this shifting picture and fluctuating nature of public opinion on the cannabis question, one wonders how it might affect what is sure to be a tight race in the November election.
For their part, Democrats are seemingly supporting the cannabis reform. On Monday, the Democratic National Convention formally approved a 2024 party platform that highlights President Joe Biden‘s efforts to address marijuana reform. More precisely, his historic cannabis pardons and moves to reschedule marijuana as well as a push to expunge prior cannabis-related convictions. Yet, as highlighted by Benzinga’s Juan Spínelli, the 2020 version of the platform is more comprehensive in terms of cannabis as compared to the 2024 platform, which omitted broader cannabis decriminalization and medical marijuana legalization.
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