The USA has complicated cannabis laws. While many states and regions have passed laws to make cannabis legal at a local level, at the federal level, cannabis remains illegal. It’s a sticking point that makes things difficult for consumers and businesses – many people are asking when the federal laws will be changed to make weed legal across the United States of America.
It is a question that those with even a slight interest in cannabis or American politics have been asking for decades. And that question might just have become more pressing as the Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris, has now officially pledged to legalise recreational weed at the federal level.
Of course, anyone who has followed past political pledges concerning cannabis in the US will undoubtedly have a certain level of scepticism. But could this be different? Just how close is America to legalising weed?
The cannabis landscape in the US
It’s no secret that much of the US is considerably more cannabis-liberal than many other parts of the world – including here in the UK. As of October 2024, 24 states and the District of Columbia have introduced legislation legalising the cultivation, distribution, and possession of weed, with more states set to vote on similar initiatives in the near future.
Analysis by the Pew Research Center shows that 54% of Americans now live in a state where recreational cannabis is legal, and more than three-quarters live in a county with at least one medical or recreational cannabis dispensary. Yet, at the federal level, one could argue that the US is falling behind other countries, as even medicinal cannabis remains prohibited.
Still, with support for cannabis legalisation appearing to be relatively consistent across the vast nation, some critics have suggested that voters may soon force the hand of Congress to consider wider reforms. In fact, it will take just ten more states to legalise cannabis to force Congress to hold an Article V convention for a constitutional amendment – and that could well open the door for federal legalisation.
However, this isn’t what has triggered new hopes of cannabis legalisation in recent days. That can be attributed to new pledges made by Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate.
What are the Presidential candidates promising?
On Monday 14th October, Harris captured headlines by unveiling new plans for her presidency, should she win the election on the 5th of November. Among the plans was a pledge to make access to cannabis “the law of the land” in a move to “break down unjust legal barriers that hold Black men and other Americans back.”
The series of pledges, which also include protecting cryptocurrency assets and providing one million loans to Black entrepreneurs, come as polls indicate that Harris’ opponent, Republican nominee and former President, Donald Trump, may be making gains among some Black voters.
No one should go to jail for smoking weed. pic.twitter.com/D932NCGmPP
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) October 15, 2024
In recent months, Trump has also made some pro-cannabis movements. In September, Trump indicated that he would vote in favour of legalising cannabis in his home state of Florida when a ballot is put forth in November. Trump has suggested that he sees the cannabis debate in Florida going only one way: legalisation. As such, he has stated his desire to ensure it is “done correctly.”
Recent surveys indicate that over half of Americans believe weed should be legal – and support is significantly stronger among young and Black voters. So, it stands to reason that Trump may also wish to position himself on the winning side of the national debate on cannabis in the run-up to the election.
But while the former President has in the past expressed support for loosening federal cannabis restrictions and expanding banking services for cannabis companies, as well as giving states more control over legalisation, he is yet to announce a new stance on the federal legalisation of cannabis.
What has the past taught us?
All of this sounds rather promising for the prospective legalisation of weed in the US. But, as has been demonstrated in politics throughout history, pledges and well-meaning words are not to be equated with an assured outcome.
Going back to the last US Presidential election in 2020, Joe Biden’s pledge to decriminalise cannabis and expunge many related prior convictions instilled hope in many. The Biden administration has honoured parts of these plans.
In 2022 and 2023, widespread pardons were granted to people who had been federally convicted of simple possession and in 2022, Biden asked the Department of Health and Human Services and the Justice Department to review the classification of cannabis in the Controlled Substances Act.
The Justice Department later recommended that cannabis be moved from Schedule I (which includes heroin and ecstasy) to Schedule III of the Act; however, the process of rescheduling weed has been slow and has still not been completed – a problem that Vice President Kamala Harris has blamed on federal bureaucracy.
Moreover, the federal decriminalisation of cannabis appears to have taken a backseat in the current presidential period, leading to more scepticism on the plans for cannabis reform that have since been announced. Still, many would point out that the reforms made by the Biden administration may well be the most significant effort made to roll back the US’s strict federal prohibition on cannabis.
What could the future hold for cannabis in the US?
The question now is, could it be different this time? Vice President Harris’s latest pledge is the strongest stance on the issue by a senior politician in years – since Bernie Sanders pledged to legalise cannabis through executive action in the first 100 days of office if he was elected in the 2020 election. But just how likely is it to happen?
Well, first and foremost, Harris will have to win the election against Trump on the 5th of November. While Harris had enjoyed a lead in election polls when it was announced that she would be replacing Biden as the Democratic presidential nominee, more recent figures indicate that the race could be getting tighter. And with hundreds of thousands of ballots already cast in early votes, the statements made in the next few weeks could prove crucial.
Still, even if Harris and her cannabis pledge are defeated next month, that wouldn’t necessarily spell the end for the progression of reforms in the US. After all, Donald Trump has surprised many with support for weed-related initiatives in the past – often at odds with prominent figures in his own party. So, just how close is America to legalising weed? Well, arguably closer than ever before.
