Virginia Democrats look to legalize marijuana sales

Julia Eisen – WMAL News | November 17, 2023

Incoming Democratic majorities in Virginia’s House and Senate bring renewed hope to revive plans to legalize recreational pot sales in Virginia.

This comes more than two years after recreational marijuana was legalized in the state but the plans to allow recreational sale went up in smoke when Governor Glenn Youngkin took office and Republicans won control of the House in 2022.

State Senator Adam Ebbin is now optimistic about the future of marijuana sales.

“With incoming Democratic majorities for both the Senate and the House, I’m hopeful we can get something to the Governor’s desk,” Ebbin said.

Ebbin claims that the revenue possibilities of cannabis use will help the state.

Earlier this year, The Daily Progress quoted Joseph Guthrie, commissioner of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, who said Youngkin’s not interested in legalizing recreational sales of marijuana, so he wouldn’t expect that to happen in his administration.

WMAL News Correspondent Heather Curtis contributed to this report.

Tune in live for more on the stories that matter to you: WMAL.com | WMAL app | “Alexa, play W-M-A-L”