Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke is making Texans a promise: If they elect him as governor, he’ll legalize marijuana.
Shortly after his resounding victory in Tuesday night’s primary, O’Rourke asked a crowd of supporters in Fort Worth: “Don’t you think it’s time we legalize marijuana in the state of Texas? I do too. We can get that done.”
He reiterated his position again on Twitter in the days following.
The issue could come up often on the campaign trail later this year, as O’Rourke prepares for a face-off against Gov. Greg Abbott in November. Abbott, a Republican, has only gone as far as to suggest the drug should be decriminalized.
Marijuana is fully legal in 18 states and the District of Columbia. Texas has so far rejected recreational access to the drug, though the state Legislature recently approved a minor extension of its medicinal use.
Abbott has been lukewarm on the subject, suggesting for years that marijuana possession should not lead to jail time. Possession of up to two ounces of cannabis in Texas is a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine.
“One thing that I believe in — and I believe the state Legislature believes in — and that is prison and jail is a place for dangerous criminals who may harm others, and small possession of marijuana is not the type of violation that we want to stockpile jails with,” Abbott said in January.
Still, the Legislature has made no moves to decriminalize the drug over the course of Abbott’s two terms in office. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a conservative Republican, has been the main source of resistance — and the state Senate, the chamber he leads, has killed or watered down several proposals that would relax marijuana laws.
In 2019, a Patrick spokesman told the Texas Tribune that he was “strongly opposed to weakening any laws against marijuana (and) remains wary of the various medicinal use proposals that could become a vehicle for expanding access to this drug.”
The November general election is widely expected to benefit Republicans, and Abbott is the favorite in the gubernatorial contest. But if O’Rourke pulled off an upset, he’d still have to work with the conservative state Legislature — including Patrick, potentially — on any proposals.
A June 2021 poll by the University of Texas at Austin found that 60 percent of Texans believe possession of small or large amounts of marijuana for any purpose should be legal.
Another 27 percent said the drug should only be allowed for medical purposes, and 13 percent said it should be outlawed entirely.
cayla.harris@express-news.net
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