Texas Marijuana Policy Voter Guide
General Election Edition
In Texas, citizen-initiated ballot propositions are not allowed, so elected officials at the state and federal levels are responsible for upholding or reforming current marijuana laws. Elections offer an opportunity for voters to decide who will represent them when these decisions are made.
We surveyed candidates seeking the Democratic and Republican nominations for the Texas House, Texas Senate, U.S. House, and U.S. Senate. Identify your Texas House, Texas Senate, and U.S. House Districts.
Review our Texas Marijuana Policy Voter Guide to find out where the candidates stand on this important issue.
Review our Texas Legislator Voting Records.
Please make a donation to support this important program!
Texas and 26 other states in the U.S. cannot collect signatures to place an issue on the ballot for a vote to change state law. Additionally, in 1997, Texas passed a state law requiring that all drug laws be enforced and changed at the state rather than local level. Because of these limitations, Texans must rely on our state elected officials, specifically our state representatives and state senators (so take a close look at yours). Learn more about engaging with your legislators by reviewing our Activist Training Guide.
Texas NORML originated the first cannabis centric Voter Guide in 2012. We continued to expand the program by working with our coalition, Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy, a broad coalition of organizations, activists, and community leaders dedicated to realizing effective, efficient, and evidence-based marijuana policies in Texas. We offer Primary Election and General Election Voter Guide editions.
State Candidate Survey Questions:
- Allow patients with debilitating medical conditions (e.g. cancer, chronic pain, PTSD) to access full-spectrum medical cannabis, with physicians making dosing decisions.
- Make low-level possession of marijuana punishable by a fine, but no jail time, and an opportunity to avoid a criminal record.
- Allow adults 21+ to possess limited amounts of marijuana and establish a legal market.
- States should be able to carry out their own marijuana policies without federal interference.
Federal Candidate Survey Questions:
- Deschedule cannabis, removing it from the Controlled Substances Act and allowing domestic cannabis research.
- Veterans Administration doctors should be allowed to recommend cannabis to treat service-related injuries.
- State-licensed cannabis businesses should have legal access to the banking system to avoid doing business in cash.
- States should be able to carry out their own marijuana policies without interference from the federal government.
We recommend taking the following actions in your area:
- Register yourself and educate others on registering to vote – This is the only way we can be eligible to vote for cannabis-friendly candidates. Register to vote!
- Share the Texas NORML Voter Guide Interactive Link with all of your friends and family and through social media.
- Print and distribute. In addition to the obvious cannabis consumer friendly locations, consider printing up stacks of the Voters’ Guide and leaving them next to the League of Women Voter Guide at your local grocery stores and libraries.
- Look up the State Representatives and State Senators for your area. Find supportive candidates on social media and follow them. Encourage your members to volunteer for their campaigns. Build relationships and plan on staying in touch throughout the legislative process.
- Remind everyone to vote!! Early Voting : October 13-30, 2020 | Election Day: November 3, 2020.