“If I win, I’ll have the wind at my back,’’ said Connecticut Gubernatorial candidate Ned Lamont in reference to cannabis. “I’ll say we have a budget crisis, and more importantly, Massachusetts legalized, and they’re driving across the border.’’ Connecticut voters are overwhelmingly in favor of legalizing cannabis, so it’s a good issue to focus on as votes draw near.
Lamont, a democrat, also pointed out that having a legal market is better than having an illicit market, and that, “I’ll regulate it. I’ll be careful in terms of quality or potency. I think we know what we’re doing.” In terms of bringing in revenue and quashing a criminal marketplace that lands people in jail for a plant, it certainly does seem that the hopeful knows what he’s doing.
He’s compared and paired legalizing and regulating cannabis with sports betting. Pointing to New Jersey as an example, he said “the train has already left the station.” When it comes to NJ, he could be referencing either sports betting or cannabis, the latter of which has been rumored to be legalized in NJ in the coming weeks and is already broadly medicalized there.
Lamont says that he believes Connecticut could generate between $150 million and $200 million if they legalize adult use cannabis and sports betting at the same time.
Bringing revenue into the state isn’t Lamont’s only concern. He’s a union man and he is telling the unions that they’ll make out better with him than with his opponent. Lamont’s had the unions’ support for some time now and continues to enjoy it as the elections approach.
With workers behind him and those in favor of cannabis legalization backing him as well, Lamont has a very good shot at winning come November. As of now, he’s leading by 5 percentage points in the polls. His opponent, Bob Stefanowski (R), has not said that he’s opposed to cannabis, in fact he’s said he’d consider it down the line, but he’s certainly not making it part of his running points.
Interstate trafficking is a big concern, especially for the smugglers sticking their necks out and the cops who are forced to continue to crack down on America’s most popular plant. So is the state’s budget and workers’ rights and they all add up to a few of good reasons why Lamont might win: on the cannabis legalization stance, allowing for sports betting and his vast union support.
