{"id":84163,"date":"2025-11-05T05:47:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T13:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/11\/05\/virginias-newly-elected-governor-supports-legalizing-recreational-marijuana-sales\/"},"modified":"2025-11-05T19:51:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T03:51:30","slug":"virginias-newly-elected-governor-supports-legalizing-recreational-marijuana-sales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/11\/05\/virginias-newly-elected-governor-supports-legalizing-recreational-marijuana-sales\/","title":{"rendered":"Virginia\u2019s Newly Elected Governor Supports Legalizing Recreational Marijuana Sales"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

Efforts to legalize adult-use marijuana sales in Virginia got a boost on Tuesday with the election<\/a> of Abigail Spanberger as the state\u2019s next governor. The Democrat supports the reform, unlike outgoing Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), who twice vetoed measures to enact it that were sent to his desk by the legislature.<\/p>\n

Spanberger, a former congresswoman, told Marijuana Moment ahead of the election that \u201cas Virginia takes steps toward creating a legalized retail market for cannabis,\u201d the commonwealth \u201cneeds a clear strategy to set up a market that is safe for consumers, transparent for businesses, and fair to entrepreneurs.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added that \u201crevenue from commercial cannabis products must return to Virginia communities and be reinvested for purposes like strengthening our public schools.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spanberger said she will \u201cwork with leaders in the General Assembly to find a path forward that both prioritizes public safety and grows Virginia\u2019s economy\u201d\u2014and that part of that is establishing \u201ca formalized, legal, emerging cannabis market.\u201d<\/p>\n

Use and possession of\u00a0marijuana has been legal in Virginia since 2022<\/a>, but retail sales remain banned\u2014a situation that\u2019s helped fuel a multibillion-dollar illicit market. Despite efforts by Democrats in past years to legalize and regulate the retail system, Youngkin has stood in the way of the reform, vetoing proposals passed by lawmakers during each of the last two sessions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Spanberger\u2019s pro-legalization stance contrasts with that of Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears (R), who she defeated in Tuesday\u2019s gubernatorial election. The GOP candidate has called cannabis a \u201cgateway drug.\u201d<\/p>\n

During a debate last month she said that as the owner of a utility repair business she had a zero-tolerance policy for marijuana consumption, fearing that working who tested positive for THC while working with gas and electricity would \u201cblow everything up.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the debate, Spanberger discussed her support for establishing a legal and regulated cannabis sales system, saying that \u201cit\u2019s important that there be transparency in what is available on the market.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a former federal agent who worked narcotics cases, as a CIA officer who tracked transnational criminal organizations, as the only person on stage who\u2019s had a bill signed into law by President Trump restricting fentanyl flowing into our country and tightening our border security, and as the only person on stage with the endorsement of the Police Benevolent Association, it is extraordinarily important that we have transparency and that there is a clear market in order to be enforced,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The new governor-elect last year also said<\/a>\u00a0\u201cthere are a lot of gray areas in terms of how we procure recreational marijuana within Virginia\u2014and the state needs \u201ca clear strategy and plan to transition Virginia into a state that has legalized retail markets that can focus on these concerns.\u201d<\/p>\n

During her time in Congress, Spanberger voted twice on the House floor in support of bills to federally\u00a0legalize<\/a>\u00a0marijuana<\/a>. She also consistently backed legislation to\u00a0free<\/a>\u00a0up<\/a>\u00a0banking services for the industry,\u00a0protect<\/a>\u00a0all<\/a>\u00a0state cannabis program from federal interference and\u00a0expand<\/a>\u00a0marijuana research. The former congresswoman additionally opposed a\u00a0proposal<\/a>\u00a0to remove protections for universities that study cannabis.<\/p>\n

She voted against certain reform proposals, however, including on measures to\u00a0lift<\/a>\u00a0certain<\/a>\u00a0research barriers for Schedule I drugs and to revise federal policy to\u00a0prevent<\/a>\u00a0past marijuana use from being used as a factor to determine eligibility for a security clearance.<\/p>\n

Spanberger cosponsored bills to provide medical cannabis access for military veterans on two occasions, and she cosponsored the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act during the 116th Congress.<\/p>\n

In 2018 she posted on Twitter that she supports legislation to reschedule marijuana to a Schedule III substance.<\/p>\n

\n

Medical marijuana
\nI support the CARES Act and HR 1227. I also support HR 1220 which would reschedule marijuana from Class I to Class III.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Abigail Spanberger (@SpanbergerForVA) February 23, 2018<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

When Spanberger is inaugurated in January, she will have an expanded Democratic majority in the House of Delegates to work with as a result of Tuesday\u2019s election results, as well as an existing majority in the Senate, members of which were not up for election this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cGovernor-elect Spanberger\u2019s win finally gives Virginia the long-overdue opportunity to establish a regulated adult-use cannabis market,\u201d JM Pedini, executive director for Virginia NORML and development director at NORML\u2019s national organization, told Marijuana Moment. \u201cLegislators have done the work and the public is ready. Now it\u2019s time to deliver a safe, legal marketplace that serves consumers and communities instead of the illicit market.\u201d<\/p>\n

In recent months, a Virginia legislative commission has been discussing plans to prepare the state to legalize recreational marijuana sales<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Del. Paul Krizek (D), chair of the\u00a0Joint Commission to Oversee the Transition of the Commonwealth into a Cannabis Retail Market<\/a>, began the most recent meeting last month by noting it would be the second-to-last for the body\u2014saying that at the next and final one in December, members will \u201cgo over the bill that we are working on now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The plan is for the body to suggest a proposal that the full legislature can consider passing in the 2026 session that begins in January.<\/p>\n

At the legislative commission\u2019s first meeting in July, members\u00a0discussing broad regulatory considerations and other issues related to THC potency, the hemp market<\/a>\u00a0and more. In August, the panel\u00a0focused on cannabis taxes and revenue<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, a top Democratic Virginia senator recently said\u00a0the state should move forward with legalizing recreational marijuana sales<\/a>\u2014in part to offset the Trump administration\u2019s cuts to federal spending in support of states.<\/p>\n

The post Virginia\u2019s Newly Elected Governor Supports Legalizing Recreational Marijuana Sales<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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Efforts to legalize adult-use marijuana sales in Virginia got a boost on Tuesday with the election of Abigail Spanberger as the state\u2019s next governor. The Democrat supports the reform, unlike outgoing Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), who twice vetoed measures to enact it that were sent to his desk by theContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":459,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84163"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/459"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84163"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84163\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":84164,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84163\/revisions\/84164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84163"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84163"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84163"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}