Poll: Americans think cannabis industry would do better under Harris presidency

By wide margins, Americans think Vice President Kamala Harris would be more beneficial for the nation’s cannabis industry if she’s elected president instead of former President Donald Trump, according to a new YouGov poll.

The survey asked U.S. adults whether think 20 key industries would fare better under the two candidates, and 45% said the weed biz would find better conditions under Harris. Meanwhile, just 16% thought it would experience smoother sailing under Trump.

More than a quarter of those polled said they weren’t sure who would better enhance the cannabis industry, while 13% ranked the candidates about the same.

Even a significant share of Republicans appeared to think a Trump White House would be bad news for cannabis. Around 31% of those who identified as GOP supporters said Trump would do better for the industry, while 30% said Harris would.

However, a wide swath of Democrats (65%) said a Harris presidency would prove more fertile for the cannabis industry. Only 4% of Dems said Trump would be preferable for the pot biz.

Last month, Harris pledged to support the nationwide legalization of recreational cannabis if elected president. In a statement issued at the time, she decried current pot laws as “unjust legal barriers that hold Black men and other Americans back.”

Harris, a former prosecutor, also promised to fight to create a thriving nationwide cannabis industry. During her time in the U.S. Senate, she sponsored at least one federal cannabis legalization bill.

While Trump said he’d vote for a Florida ballot measure to legalize recreational pot, his White House wasn’t exactly weed-friendly. After the reality show star’s 2016 election, his attorney general eliminated Obama-era guidelines that instructed federal prosecutors not to interfere with states that legalized pot.

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This article appears in Oct 30 – Nov 5, 2024.