Sen. Jim Burgin, R-Lee, said he voted against SB711 because of his concern that it would allow “Big Marijuana” to flourish in North Carolina following legislative efforts to limit the influence of “Big Tobacco.”
North Carolina Guide
Upcoming Election
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Your Elected Officials
Governor
A
Josh Stein
(D)
Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein said the bill lacks protections and should go further in decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana and expunging past convictions. “It’s past time for N.C. to move forward on medical cannabis, decriminalization of simple possession, and expungement of criminal records, but we have to do it right. HB 563 fails to adequately protect kids,” Stein wrote in a statement shared last week.
Lieutenant Governor
B
Rachel Hunt
(D)
Attorney General
A
Jeff Jackson
(D)
U.S. Senate
F
Ted Budd
(R)
U.S. Senate
D
Thom Tillis
(R)
Senator Thom Tillis does not explicitly support legalization of marijuana but does support further research regarding the safety and benefits cannabis, particularly the pain relieving effects.
U.S. House District 1
B
Don Davis
(D)
Reflector 6/8/2022 - Local lawmakers mixed on medical cannabis bill
Sen. Don Davis, who represents Pitt and Greene counties, said the licensure policy established in the bill led him to vote against it. He was one of two Democrats to vote against the bill in the Senate despite having an “open mind” about legalization itself.
“I’ve maintained a commitment to farmers over the years, and when I look at the bill I believe the bill leaves out your small family farmers in particular,” Davis said. “Eastern North Carolina’s economy (has) struggled ever since tobacco manufacturing has gone south and I think it’s important we continue to look at ways to build our economy.”
Davis added he would like to see a bill include some form of decriminalization or forgiveness for those convicted for possessing small amounts of marijuana.
U.S. House District 2
B
Deborah Ross
(D)
U.S. House District 3
D
Greg Murphy
(R)
U.S. House District 4
A
Valerie Foushee
(D)
U.S. House District 5
F
Virginia Foxx
(R)
2021 - Despite her position against cannabis, she has bought cannabis stock. https://www.salon.com/2021/05/29/meet-the-anti-legalization-gop-congresswoman-cashing-in-on-marijuana-stocks/
"Legalization of hemp cultivation is a topic on which I received a great deal of mail when I was in the North Carolina State Senate but I have not read a great deal about it since coming to Congress. One of my concerns is that people would grow hemp to circumvent laws regarding marijuana. Drug addiction is one of the largest challenges we face in this country and I will continue to oppose any effort to make it easier for people to grow and use drugs." https://tinyurl.com/FoxxHempEqualMarijuana
U.S. House District 6
U.S. House District 7
F
David Rouzer
(R)
Rouzer was a signatory to a letter to Mike Crapo, the chair of the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday, thanking him for proposing a series of restrictive changes to a House-passed bill to provide marijuana businesses with greater access to financial services.
U.S. House District 8
F
Mark Harris
(R)
U.S. House District 9
F
Richard Hudson
(R)
U.S. House District 10
F
Patrick Harrigan
(R)
U.S. House District 11
F
Chuck Edwards
(R)
Edwards along with 13 other members of Congress urged the DEA to "'reject' the top federal health agency’s recommendation to reschedule marijuana and instead keep it in the most restrictive category under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
The Carolina Journal 8/18/2023: Cherokee people should say no to pot
"To allow our citizens to travel only a few miles to buy and use this common gateway drug — which the CDC and the New England Journal of Medicine have said can result in short- and long-term danger of addiction, altered brain development, chronic psychosis disorders, and others — would be irresponsible. And I intend to stop it."
U.S. House District 12
A
Alma Adams
(D)
U.S. House District 13
F
Brad Knott
(R)
U.S. House District 14
D
Timothy Moore
(R)
WRAL 6/12/22:
Shortly after the medical marijuana bill cleared the Senate, GOP House Speaker Tim Moore said he opposes the legislation and doesn’t plan to consider it as the legislative session winds down this month. He also declined to say whether his chamber would hold a vote in the future.
“I want to see where our folks are on it. I really do,” Moore said. “That one has just kind of been thrown down, and I don't see an appetite to take that up in the shorter session. As far as the long session, I won't say one way or the other."
State Senate District 1
F
Norman Sanderson
(R)
State Senate District 2
State Senate District 3
B
Bobby Hanig
(R)
State Senate District 4
D
Buck Newton
(R)
State Senate District 5
A
Kandie Smith
(D)
State Senate District 6
B
Michael Lazzara
(R)
State Senate District 7
B+
Michael Lee
(R)
State Senate District 8
B+
Bill Rabon
(R)
State Senate District 9
B-
Brent Jackson
(R)
State Senate District 10
B-
Benton Sawrey
(R)
State Senate District 11
B-
Lisa Barnes
(R)
State Senate District 12
F
Jim Burgin
(R)
“Marijuana does not treat the ill, but only masks the symptoms,” he said.
State Senate District 13
A
Lisa Grafstein
(D)
State Senate District 14
A-
Dan Blue
(D)
State Senate District 15
A+
Jay Chaudhuri
(D)
State Senate District 16
B
Gale Adcock
(D)
State Senate District 17
B-
Sydney Batch
(D)
Carolina Democracy Interview 7/18/22:
"And with medical marijuana that was a really interesting bill too, because it wasn't just everybody, I think said everything's so partisan, right? So Democrats versus the Republicans. Now if you've looked at that medical marijuana vote, there are a number of Democrats and Republicans who do not support of course medical marijuana and some that do. And so that was interesting because you have to find members and you have to actually communicate, God forbid, with all of the legislators to see where they stand on that. So the Senate, we were very proud to pass both of those out, but unfortunately medical marijuana is also not likely to move anytime soon in the House, given some of the members and leadership over there that are not supportive of it."
State Senate District 18
B-
Terence Everitt
(D)
State Senate District 19
B-
State Senate District 20
A+
Natalie Murdock
(D)
State Senate District 21
F
Tom McInnis
(R)
State Senate District 22
A
Sophia Chitlik
(D)
State Senate District 23
A+
Graig Meyer
(D)
INDY WEEK - 4/20/2024: Legalizing Cannabis:
"As Attorney General Josh Stein and I discussed recently, racial justice issues in North Carolina cannot be addressed without taking on the continued prohibition of cannabis. In North Carolina people of color make up more than 60 percent of convictions for marijuana possession, despite being only 30 percent of the population, and despite the fact that the drug is consumed roughly equally across racial lines, according to Governor Cooper’s racial equity task force.
Arrest and conviction have implications far beyond a fine and time behind bars. Criminal punishment often leads to crippling, lifelong issues, like the loss of housing, difficulty finding employment, and even challenges to a parent’s custody of their children.
It’s time for a change. "
State Senate District 24
B
Danny Britt
(R)
State Senate District 25
B
Amy Galey
(R)
State Senate District 26
B-
Philip Berger
(R)
State Senate District 27
B-
Michael Garrett
(D)
Today, the North Carolina Senate passed the Compassionate Care Act, medical cannabis. While I believe this bill doesn’t go far enough, I was happy to support a proposal to provide relief and comfort to our fellow North Carolinians. It’s now up to the House. Onward.
State Senate District 28
B
Gladys Robinson
(D)
State Senate District 29
B-
David Craven
(R)
State Senate District 30
F
Steve Jarvis
(R)
State Senate District 31
F
Dana Jones
(R)
State Senate District 32
B+
Paul Lowe
(D)
“This is a medical cannabis bill,” Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth), one of the bill’s lead sponsors, said on the Senate floor Thursday. “It’s not recreational. It does not do all of the things a recreational bill would do, and that’s for another day. But right now, I believe this bill will help some North Carolinians.”
State Senate District 33
F
Carl Ford
(R)
State Senate District 34
B-
Paul Newton
(R)
State Senate District 35
B-
Todd Johnson
(R)
State Senate District 36
F
Eddie Settle
(R)
State Senate District 37
B-
Vickie Sawyer
(R)
State Senate District 38
A-
Mujtaba Mohammed
(D)
State Senate District 39
A
State Senate District 40
A-
Joyce Waddell
(D)
State Senate District 41
A
Caleb Theodros
(D)
State Senate District 42
State Senate District 43
F
Brad Overcash
(R)
State Senate District 44
F
Ted Alexander
(R)
State Senate District 45
F
Mark Hollo
(R)
State Senate District 46
F
Warren Daniel
(R)
State Senate District 47
B-
Ralph Hise
(R)
State Senate District 48
B-
Tim Moffitt
(R)
State Senate District 49
A
Julie Mayfield
(D)
Sen. Julie Mayfield (D-Buncombe) requested to amend the bill for in-state growers and retailers to participate in the medical marijuana trade. “This is a bill that the public clearly wants, but it is not quite there yet,” said Mayfield who ultimately voted against it.
State Sen. Julie Mayfield (D-Buncombe County) told WNCN-TV that “no North Carolina company can get one of the licenses.”
Democratic Sen. Julie Mayfield has expressed concerns with the vertical structure, saying that only large corporations would be able to afford to compete and that the state’s hemp businesses would be shut out.
Mayfield filed an amendment that would require the commission to issue dozens of separate grower, processing and retail licenses, but lawmakers tabled that amendment.
State Senate District 50
B-
Kevin Corbin
(R)
State House District 1
B-
Ed Goodwin
(R)
State House District 2
State House District 3
State House District 4
F
Jimmy Dixon
(R)
Dixon called marijuana a “hellish gateway drug,”
State House District 5
F
William Ward
(R)
State House District 6
State House District 7
F
Matt Winslow
(R)
State House District 8
State House District 9
F
Timothy Reeder
(R)
State House District 10
D
John Bell
(R)
State House District 11
A+
Allison Dahle
(D)
State House District 12
C
Chris Humphrey
(R)
State House District 13
D
Celeste Cairns
(R)
State House District 14
State House District 15
F
Phil Shepard
(R)
State House District 16
State House District 17
D
Frank Iler
(R)
State House District 18
A
Deborah Butler
(D)
State House District 19
C
Charlie Miller
(R)
State House District 20
F
Ted Davis
(R)
State House District 21
B-
Ya Liu
(D)
State House District 22
F
William Brisson
(R)
State House District 23
D
State House District 24
State House District 25
B-
Allen Chesser
(R)
State House District 26
F
Donna White
(R)
State House District 27
A
Rodney Pierce
(D)
State House District 28
D
Larry Strickland
(R)
State House District 29
A
Vernetta Alston
(D)
State House District 30
A
Marcia Morey
(D)
State House District 31
A+
Zack Hawkins
(D)
State House District 32
State House District 33
B-
State House District 34
A-
Tim Longest
(D)
State House District 35
D
State House District 36
A
Julie von Haefen
(D)
State House District 37
C
Erin Paré
(R)
State House District 38
A
Abe Jones
(D)
State House District 39
A
James Roberson
(D)
State House District 40
B
Phil Rubin
(D)
State House District 41
A
Maria Cervania
(D)
State House District 42
B
Mike Colvin
(D)
State House District 43
C
Diane Wheatley
(R)
State House District 44
State House District 45
A
Frances Jackson
(D)
State House District 46
F
Brenden Jones
(R)
State House District 47
B-
Jarrod Lowery
(R)
State House District 48
B
Garland Pierce
(D)
State House District 49
A
Cynthia Ball
(D)
State House District 50
A
Renée Price
(D)
State House District 51
F
John Sauls
(R)
State House District 52
F
Ben Moss
(R)
State House District 53
F
Howard Penny
(R)
State House District 54
B+
Robert Reives
(D)
State House District 55
F
Mark Brody
(R)
State House District 56
A
Allen Buansi
(D)
State House District 57
A
Tracy Clark
(D)
State House District 58
D
Amos Quick
(D)
State House District 59
State House District 60
A
Cecil Brockman
(D)
State House District 61
A+
Pricey Harrison
(D)
State House District 62
F
John Blust
(R)
State House District 63
D
Stephen Ross
(R)
State House District 64
D
Dennis Riddell
(R)
State House District 65
C
Reece Pyrtle
(R)
State House District 66
A
Sarah Crawford
(D)
State House District 67
State House District 68
D
David Willis
(R)
State House District 69
State House District 70
F
Brian Biggs
(R)
State House District 71
B-
Kanika Brown
(D)
State House District 72
A
Amber Baker
(D)
State House District 73
F
Jonathan Almond
(R)
State House District 74
F
Jeff Zenger
(R)
State House District 75
B-
Donny Lambeth
(R)
State House District 76
B-
Harry Warren
(R)
State House District 77
F
Julia Howard
(R)
State House District 78
F
Neal Jackson
(R)
State House District 79
F
Keith Kidwell
(R)
State House District 80
D
Sam Watford
(R)
State House District 81
D
Larry Potts
(R)
State House District 82
D
Brian Echevarria
(R)
State House District 83
D
Grant Campbell
(R)
State House District 84
D
Jeff McNeely
(R)
State House District 85
State House District 86
F
Hugh Blackwell
(R)
State House District 87
F
Destin Hall
(R)
State House District 88
A
Mary Belk
(D)
State House District 89
D
Mitchell Setzer
(R)
State House District 90
F
Sarah Stevens
(R)
State House District 91
D
Kyle Hall
(R)
State House District 92
B
Terry Brown
(D)
State House District 93
B-
Ray Pickett
(R)
State House District 94
State House District 95
State House District 96
F
Jay Adams
(R)
State House District 97
State House District 98
State House District 99
A
Nasif Majeed
(D)
State House District 100
B+
Julia Greenfield
(D)
State House District 101
A
Carolyn Logan
(D)
State House District 102
A
Becky Carney
(D)
State House District 103
B-
Laura Budd
(D)
State House District 104
B-
Brandon Lofton
(D)
State House District 105
D
Tricia Cotham
(R)
State House District 106
B+
Carla Cunningham
(D)
State House District 107
A+
Aisha Dew
(D)
State House District 108
D
John Torbett
(R)
State House District 109
D
Donnie Loftis
(R)
State House District 110
D
Kelly Hastings
(R)
State House District 111
F
Paul Scott
(R)
State House District 112
A+
Jordan Lopez
(D)
State House District 113
D
Jake Johnson
(R)
State House District 114
A
Eric Ager
(D)
State House District 115
A
Lindsey Prather
(D)
State House District 116
A
Brian Turner
(D)
State House District 117
F
Jennifer Balkcom
(R)
State House District 118
F
Mark Pless
(R)
"It is a gateway drug, which causes confusion as its primary function and results in addiction." Republican opposition defeats North Carolina medical cannabis again
State House District 119
D
Mike Clampitt
(R)
State House District 120
B-
Karl Gillespie
(R)