Cannabis debate enters US presidential elections

The 2016 U.S. presidential election will take place on November 8, 2016, and will result in the election of the 45th^e President of the United States. This 58th^e The U.S. presidential election is addressing the debate over cannabis and its legalization for the first time.

The U.S. Constitution does not allow President Obama to seek a third term. Thus, after two consecutive terms, Barack Obama’s presidency will end on Election Day. The candidates with a good chance of winning the race for the White House are Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders for the Democrats, and Ted Cruz and Donald Trump for the Republicans. The presidential candidates from the two major parties are taking sides in the ongoing «for or against» debate over the legalization of cannabis, which has emerged as a major political issue among politicians. Some of Bernie Sanders' supporters have even put a cannabis pipe in the candidate's colors up for sale!

Various U.S. states, such as Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington, already have laws permitting the recreational and medical use of cannabis. Twenty-three other states allow only medical use and are steadily moving toward decriminalizing possession to some extent.

The cannabis market is booming in the U.S. Financial projections for cannabis sales in 2016 forecast nationwide revenue of $7 billion. Furthermore, projected revenue from cannabis sales taxes estimates that Washington State alone will see a revenue surge of 60 million $ during its first year of cannabis sales. In Colorado, the first state in the world to regulate cannabis production and sales, revenue from cannabis sales taxes reached $45 million.

As a result, this «green capital»—generated by cannabis taxes—can help fund each state’s efforts to build public schools and hospitals, improve infrastructure, and so on.

No matter who becomes the next U.S. president, the trend toward cannabis legalization in the United States will not change. Cannabis is on a nationwide path to legalization, and no Democrat or Republican will be able to stop this momentum. The only likely difference depending on the election outcome will be the time it takes to reach a decision. With a Republican in office, it might take a little longer, but ultimately the result will be the same: legalization. In any case, if the next president wants to buy cannabis seeds presidential elections—he doesn’t hesitate to mention them in passing to our French politicians.