Politics
Where Vice Presidential Candidate Tim Walz Stands On Marijuana
Vice President Kamala Harris, the 2024 Democratic nominee, selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate—meaning that the ticket now consists of two candidates who support marijuana legalization, in an historic first.
Walz’s record has been consistent: He backed numerous cannabis reform measures in Congress, called for an end to prohibition when he was running for governor and then signed a comprehensive legalization bill into law in 2023. However, he’s also indicated he feels the issue should be decided at the state-level.
For drug policy reform advocates, the VP pick is all the more meaningful given that Walz also enacted legislation to broadly decriminalize drug paraphernalia, allow safe consumption sites and create a psychedelics task force.
A military veteran himself, Walz has also prioritized medical cannabis access for the veteran community, and to that end, he sponsored the first piece of standalone marijuana reform legislation to move through a congressional committee, which was a measure meant to promote medical cannabis research for veterans.
Walz’s cannabis record stands in stark contrast to former President Donald Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-OH), who has voiced support for states’ rights to legalize but voted against bipartisan banking legislation that passed in committee. Vance has also argued that states that have enacted legalization should increase enforcement activities, complained about the smell of cannabis multiple times and suggested that its use can lead to violence.
With the selection of Walz as Harris’s vice presidential pick, the Democratic ticket is the first in U.S. history where both candidates openly back marijuana legalization, while also supporting social equity initiatives to right the wrongs of criminalization.
This story was last updated on October 4, 2024 to include the candidate’s statements and policy actions on marijuana since joining the race.
Here’s where vice presidential nominee Walz stands on marijuana policy:
Legislation And Policy Actions
Minnesota governor (2019-present)
One of the most impactful policy actions Walz took as governor in 2023 was signing a bill to legalize marijuana, making Minnesota the 23rd state to enact the reform.
He strongly advocated for legalization as lawmakers worked to deliver the legislation to his desk, and he also directed state agencies to prepare to implement legalization shortly after taking office—years before it appeared that a reform bill could actually pass.
“This has been a long journey with a lot of folks involved,” Walz, who also put legalization language in multiple executive budget proposals, said at a signing ceremony. “What we know right now is prohibition does not work. We’ve criminalized a lot of folks who are going to start the expungement process on those records.”
Today I signed a bill legalizing adult-use cannabis and expunging nonviolent cannabis convictions in Minnesota.
This is the right move for Minnesota.— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) May 31, 2023
The governor signed a bill in May making several revisions to the state’s marijuana laws, including provisions to allow recreational cultivation to start in 2024. Another measure he approved stipulates that all military veterans to be eligible for cannabis social equity business licenses.
Walz also said he supports regulators’ efforts to increase advantages for marijuana social equity applicants but wants to make sure any steps don’t trigger lawsuits that upend legal sales implementation.
Under the legalization law he approved, Minnesota officials expunged more than 57,000 records for marijuana convictions. Additional criminal records will be expunged under the Clean Slate Act, a separate law passed in 2023 that will automatically seal records for non-violent, non-felony crimes beginning in January 2025.
Criminalizing cannabis hasn’t worked. Minnesota recognized this – and chose a new direction.
That’s why we legalized adult-use cannabis and are expunging nonviolent cannabis convictions in Minnesota— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) August 7, 2023
Also last year, Walz signed signed a pair of large-scale bills that include provisions to establish safe drug consumption sites and also create a psychedelics task force meant to prepare the state for possible legalization.
He also enacted a measure that year to legalize drug paraphernalia possession, syringe services, residue and testing.
Further, he signed a large-scale bill into law in 2022 that included provisions to provide permanent protections allowing state hemp businesses to legally market certain cannabis products—including foods and beverages infused with CBD and other cannabinoids that can be sold at bars.
Meanwhile, the Walz administration came under some scrutiny after it hired a lead marijuana regulator under a process that didn’t follow standard procedures. That official later stepped down.
Criminalizing cannabis hasn’t worked. By legalizing it for adult use, we’re expanding our economy, creating jobs, and regulating the industry to keep Minnesotans safe.
I’m proud to have signed this bill into law.— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) May 31, 2023
The governor has also engaged in negotiations with a group of tribal nations within the state that could make the tribes major players in the marijuana industry—both on and off reservation land, including in urban areas. He also said tribes could begin selling cannabis prior to licensing becoming available to traditional retailers.
In 2021, he signed a bill that included provisions to expand the state’s medical marijuana program, in part by allowing patients to access smokable cannabis products and edibles. Under his administration, regulators also added multiple qualifying conditions for medical cannabis, including irritable bowel syndrome and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
As part of a bill Walz signed in 2023, health care professionals can now certify medical cannabis patients for any condition they see fit.
I spent my career in Congress working to ensure that our veterans have access to the care they need — and I saw the relief medical cannabis could bring them for chronic pain.
I’m glad @mnhealth is working to help more Minnesotans get this same relief.https://t.co/JtmdLBDsD6
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) December 3, 2019
Additionally, he signed off on a proposal allowing medical cannabis caregivers to grow plants for their patients.
Congress (2007-2019)
During his time in the U.S. House of Representatives, Walz sponsored legislation to promote medical marijuana research for veterans and cosponsored bills to create a regulated hemp program and legalize non-intoxicating CBD.
The cannabis and veterans measure was the first-ever piece of marijuana reform legislation to clear a congressional committee. It passed the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, when Walz was serving as ranking member, in 2018.
Walz also voted in favor of a spending bill amendment to protect all state marijuana programs from federal interference in 2015, as well as more limited measures to safeguard medical cannabis states each time it come up for a vote on the floor while he was in office, in 2007, 2012, 2014 and 2015. He also backed an amendment to protect state CBD laws in 2015.
Additionally, he repeatedly voted for appropriations amendments to allow U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to issue medical cannabis recommendations in legal states, as well as 2014 measure aimed at increasing marijuana businesses access to banking services.
On five occasions, he also voted in favor of amendments to protect state industrial hemp programs from Justice Department interference.
On The Campaign Trail
Walz said in September 2024 that he thinks marijuana legalization is an issue that should be left to individual states, though he added that electing more Democrats to Congress could also make it easier to pass federal reforms like cannabis banking protections.
“Well, I think it’s an issue for the states on some of those, and that’s the way the states have done it,” Walz said.
Walz then highlighted two incremental reform issues: medical marijuana access for veterans who receive healthcare through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) as well as passage of federal legislation that would ease restrictions for banks that due business with marijuana companies.
If Democrats take control of both houses of Congress, he said, those matters might be easier to address.
Past Comments And Social Media Posts
In 2017, as Walz was running for governor, he pushed for the legalization of adult-use marijuana in Minnesota, saying it’s “time to create a system of regulation and taxation” for recreational cannabis.
It's time to create a system of regulation and taxation for adult-use marijuana in MN. Here’s my full statement: https://t.co/0aksM5Zz7i
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) September 8, 2017
During his State of the State address in March 2024, he spoke about the importance of “following up on the good work this legislature has already done,” including “legalized adult-use cannabis,” saying it requires “an enormous amount of work.”
In Congress during the Trump administration, Walz was also critical of then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s move to rescind Obama-era guidance that generally urged prosecutorial discretion when it came to state marijuana programs.
While the VA moves (slowly) in the right direction, AG Jeff Sessions is dead set on overruling states that have legalized recreational or medical cannabis, including MN. I'll keep fighting alongside the 83% of vets & caregivers who support legalizing medical cannabis nationally. https://t.co/b6LkoPvxYP
— Fmr. Rep. Tim Walz (@RepTimWalz) January 4, 2018
Walz also blasted the VA under Trump for declining to initiate a study into the potential therapeutic benefits of marijuana for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic pain.
This is another clear example of how out of touch the Trump Administration is with the American people, especially our nation's veterans. #Vets4MMJResearch https://t.co/TNy5IAesEF
— Fmr. Rep. Tim Walz (@RepTimWalz) January 16, 2018
He’s also been known to mark the unofficial cannabis holiday 4/20 by reiterating his support for legalization, though he made clear in 2022 that it’s “no laughing matter” that people continue to be criminalized over marijuana.
Today seems to be a good time to reinforce that I support creating a tax-and-regulate system for adult use marijuana in Minnesota.
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) April 20, 2018
There are a lot of jokes that people will make today, but the fact that our state still hasn't expunged cannabis convictions is no laughing matter. We have to get this done.
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) April 20, 2022
After signing legalization into law, Walz said Republican lawmakers were spreading “misinformation” about the policy.
He also pushed back against a legal argument that the state Constitution allows people to sell their homegrown marijuana without obtaining a license, stating that it was “not our intention” to authorize that type of commerce under the legalization legislation he approved.
During discussions with legislative leaders about the legalization bill that was advancing, Walz argued for a 15 percent tax rate on cannabis products, which is significantly higher than what lawmakers were proposing.
In August 2023, the governor said that Iowa adults are welcome to visit his state, catch a baseball game and buy marijuana under the state’s legalization law.
High-paying jobs + paid leave + good schools + adult-use cannabis + reproductive freedom = the best state
Millennial math🥇https://t.co/zm47FOOlqL
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) September 27, 2023
After President Joe Biden announced his first round of mass pardons for people who’ve committed federal marijuana possession offenses, Walz said that represented a “critical step forward,” but he reaffirmed that he supports legalization coupled with expungements of prior cannabis records.
Federal pardons for marijuana possession are a critical step forward, but Minnesotans want us to #LegalizeMN and expunge cannabis possession convictions. It’s time.
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) October 7, 2022
Both in Congress and as governor, Walz has promoted hemp legalization and the market’s economic potential.
Minnesota’s economy is built on agricultural innovation. Today I was pleased to hear directly from our farmers and tour an industrial hemp farm.
At a time when farmers face uncertainty in our markets, industrial hemp allows them to add value to our agricultural economy. pic.twitter.com/kUE00Shl5u
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) August 30, 2019
Prior to signing legalization into law in Minnesota, the governor touted a bill he signed that created a regulatory framework allowing for the marketing of hemp-derived cannabinoids.
This is a good first step to expand our economy, but there’s more to do. We need to #LegalizeMN and expunge cannabis convictions in our state.https://t.co/9mOlrtOnhL
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) July 1, 2022
Personal Experience With Marijuana
It does not appear that Walz has publicly commented on any personal experience with marijuana.
Marijuana Under A Harris-Walz Administration
While it’s difficult to predict what could be achieved under a Harris-Walz administration without knowing what the composition of Congress would look like, the ticket’s election would represent the first time that both top executives in the federal government have proactively supported marijuana legalization, which could aid in legislative efforts to enact the reform.
That would likely give state marijuana markets a sense of relief, with the prospect of federal enforcement actions negligible under a president who has called for legalization as recently as March 2024 and a vice president who signed legalization into law in his state.
To what extent they would prioritize cannabis reform is uncertain, of course.
Meanwhile, Walz’s embrace of harm reduction drug policies and psychedelics research would give advocates reason to be enthusiastic about the prospects of extending the national reform conversation beyond cannabis.
Where Trump’s Vice Presidential Running Mate J.D. Vance Stands On Marijuana
