Years of progress in the push for legal marijuana is hitting a sudden wall of opposition, thanks to a trio of potential future Republican presidential candidates.
Over the last month, three Republican governors — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders — have signaled their opposition to measures that would expand access to recreational marijuana in their states. In each case, they spoke about their opposition as a last line of defense against the widespread use of a drug they said would endanger adults and children or become an unwarranted public nuisance.
The actions of the trio, each viewed as a potential presidential hopeful in 2028, show that even as more and more voters back broadening access to marijuana, key GOP leaders are betting that opposing it could help them with the kind of conservative voters who play a critical role in the party’s presidential contests. They suggest the drug, even if it no longer sits in the center of the culture wars, might yet struggle to gain full acceptance among Americans despite its recent progress.