Trump Vs. Biden: The President Plays The Marijuana Rescheduling Card, Voters Like The Thought Of It

With the race to the White House heating up — and election polls showing President Joe Biden and twice-impeached former President Donald Trump almost neck and neck — another poll by the Pew Research Center showed that a staggering 88% of Americans from both political parties happen to agree on cannabis legalization.

This begs a question following Tuesday's news that the DEA is intending to reschedule cannabis. Will this historic shift in drug policy reform sway on-the-fence voters waiting for a reason to keep Biden in the White House?

Following Biden's move toward legalization in August 2022 when he directed the Department of Health and Human Services to review marijuana's classification as a controlled substance, his popularity ticked up. Since then advocates began to push for full removal from the DEA's Controlled Substances Act. Now, with that done, what are voters saying?

A poll conducted earlier this year indicated that Biden would enjoy significant political gains if marijuana was rescheduled under his administration.

Conducted by Lake Research Partners and commissioned by the Coalition for Cannabis Scheduling Reform, the survery showed that 58 percent of likely voters favor loosening federal marijuana laws by moving it from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act.

But more importantly, as we come closer to the otherwise tight 2024 elections in November, the survey found that voters' impression of Biden jumped a net 11 points after hearing about the implications of the rescheduling review that Biden initiated in August 2022, and that includes an 11-point favorability swing among young voters 18-25 who will be critical to his reelection bid.

A Biden Boost? It Seems So

"By the end of the poll, impressions of Biden improve by a net double-digits — an 11-point swing overall, including a double-digit (+11-point) swing among younger voters," the survey notes. 

"In conclusion, rescheduling cannabis is not only the right move from a policy perspective, it is also politically helpful," the survey concludes. "Nowhere is this more true than for younger voters—one of the most cross-pressured groups of voters, and also the most sanguine about rescheduling."

The Lake Research Partners survey also looked at a November 2023 Gallup poll, which found that support for legal cannabis hit a record high of 70% among all adults from all political parties across the U.S. They highlighted that the poll found the highest levels of support in the youngest age cohort, with 78% of the 18-34 age group supporting legalization.

So, yes, it seems that Biden made the move at the right time for his campaign. Imagine how the polls would shine if he de-scheduled cannabis completely.

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Now Read: Trump ‘Took Marijuana Reform Backwards’ While President, Says Biden Reelection Campaign

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