Marijuana move could help President Joe Biden in key voter group

The Biden administration’s move to ease federal regulations on cannabis, which was critical to the president’s 2020 victory, could help the president make much-needed gains among younger voters whose enthusiasm for re-election is waning. may be useful.

The Drug Enforcement Administration’s announcement last month that it would advance marijuana use from a Schedule I to a Schedule III substance is the most substantial federal action against the drug since it was first planned in 1970. .

Although not yet fully decriminalized, once this change is complete, marijuana use and possession will become less serious crimes at the federal level. Democratic pollster and strategist Selinda Lake said this could be combined with a criminal justice message that appeals to younger voters.

“I think it needs to be tied to criminal justice reform, which the president and vice president are already very active on. I think that’s a good part,” Lake said.

The move has been welcomed by marijuana advocates but criticized for falling short of their call for full decriminalization of marijuana, which Biden championed during his 2020 campaign.

“There’s just limited jurisdiction here, and that’s kind of the problem,” Lake said. “That’s why I think marrying this with criminal justice reform is a really, really powerful combination.”

Among voters under 30, President Biden won 24 percentage points over former President Trump in 2020. To Pew Research.of Harvard University Youth Poll A March poll found Biden with an 8-point lead over Trump among young people. Among likely voters, this indicator reaches up to 18 points.

Rudy Garrett, vice president of capacity building at the advocacy group Alliance for Youth Action (AYA), said Biden is in a “worse position among various youth groups” compared to his first matchup with Trump. ” he admitted.

“He has a lot to make up for, and I believe it’s kind of a binary opposition to the lesser of two evils, Biden and Trump,” Garrett said. “So it’s clear that we need to reach voters earlier and pay very close attention to the issues that voters express in each state, because the experiences of young people across the country are so diverse.”

The majority of the country supports legalizing marijuana.a March survey According to a Pew survey, 89 percent of adults are in favor of legalizing marijuana to some extent, with this metric being highest among adults under 30, with 93 percent favoring legalization of marijuana for either recreational or medical use. I agree with that.

The Schedule III designation means marijuana has not yet been decriminalized, and this change is unlikely to expand access to medical marijuana. Marijuana policy groups did not hesitate to express their disappointment.

“Rescheduling marijuana is not a policy solution to the federal criminalization of marijuana and its harms, nor does it address the disproportionate impact marijuana has on Black and brown communities.” said Kat Packer, director of regulatory affairs. Shortly after news of the DEA decision broke, Policy Alliance.

Paul Armentano, deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, noted that conflicts between state and federal laws will remain even after the new rules are finalized.

“The goal of federal cannabis policy reform should be to address the untenable gap that exists between federal cannabis policy and the cannabis laws of the majority of states in the United States,” he said.

But youth voting advocates say it’s still a victory for voters who care about the issue.

“The government can claim that [is] They are making progress on issues that young people care about, and they are working on drug decriminalization,” Cristina Zintzún Ramirez, president of the Next Generation American Advocacy nonprofit, told The Hill.

Tzintzún Ramírez said the Biden-Harris campaign could make changes to the list of campaign promises the administration has made, including canceling student debt and tackling climate change.

Biden announced last month that he would cancel student loans for more than 277,000 borrowers, while his administration and environmental groups have touted the Inflation Control Act as the largest investment in climate action in history.

But like his recent actions on marijuana, critics say he hasn’t done enough in these areas, especially when it comes to appealing to younger voters.

Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon) said: Politico earlier this year Biden’s actions on fighting climate change will not satisfy young voters because he has also made “many other pro-fossil decisions,” he said.

And Biden’s signature student loan forgiveness program was struck down by the Supreme Court last year, forcing him to take further incremental steps.

Garrett, an AYA, advised that if Biden wants to secure more of the youth vote, he needs to offer a more concrete plan in the coming months and focus his message on battleground states with the most young voters. .

“In typical battleground states like Wisconsin, Ohio, and Florida, we see young people looking at third-party options. So I think there’s a huge opportunity to get involved in those states,” she said. said.

“And continuing to try to address youth issues and have a clear plan for what that looks like, rather than just hoping he gets elected to a second term and then prioritizing it.” You will feel more confident over time.”