Cynthia Nixon – The Cannabis Candidate
By Andrew Wagner
IG: @sdcannablogger
The race for New York’s governor may not end until November, but Cynthia Nixon is already dictating policy in the state.
When Cynthia Nixon announced her candidacy for New York’s governor, she immediately addressed cannabis as an issue. Nixon’s platform has been to eliminate the racial bias when it comes to cannabis arrests and convictions. To be clear – she doesn’t want to criminalize cannabis further; she wants cannabis decriminalized/legalized, regulated, and taxed, just as it is in nine states (and Washington D.C.). Now, as reported by Leafly, she’s running as the “cannabis candidate for New York governor.”
Her opponent, incumbent Governor Andrew Cuomo, disagrees. At least, he used to.
Gov. Cuomo has been against cannabis legalization for decades. That is, until Cynthia Nixon owned him in a gubernatorial debate. After repeated attempts to destroy her character, even going so far as to drag her acting career into the debate (as if an actor can’t be a politician). Perhaps Gov. Cuomo, born in 1957, forgot about Ronald Reagan, Sonny Bono, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Clint Eastwood, Jesse Ventura, and (dare I mention) Donald Trump. Many actors have transitioned from the stage and screen to politics and been widely successful.
Now, Gov. Cuomo announced he will be holding a series of 15 statewide “listening sessions” on the subject of cannabis to be held in September and October. Why the sudden change of heart? Forbes believes Nixon has a lot to do with that:
Cuomo was staunchly against legalizing marijuana until Nixon entered the political arena. Cuomo suddenly entertaining or feigning interest in considering the idea of legalizing adult use marijuana is seen by some as a cynical, unmasked attempt to undermine his political opponent. Nixon is running on a platform of adult use marijuana legalization. Perhaps if he cannot ride his coattails to a third term, or beat her in a debate, he thinks he can win by “hepeating,” her ideas.
The name “Cuomo” is a familiar one to those in the northeast. His father, Mario Cuomo, was a three-time governor of New York, serving throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s. Mario Cuomo also infamously ran against then-mayor Ed Koch for mayor of New York City in 1977, during which his campaign slogan was “Vote for Cuomo, Not the Homo.” Now, Ms. Nixon is turning Cuomo’s father’s political gaffe against him by joking, “Vote for the Homo, not for Cuomo.”
Whether or not Nixon wins the Democratic primary in September, she’s already making waves in New York politics. While Cuomo still leads in the polls, his poor performance in debates has caused him to redirect his campaign narrative to compete with his opponent. Whether it’s a legitimate change of heart or not remains to be seen. Perhaps Gov. Cuomo is grasping at straws to remain relevant, but if he can’t ignore facts, change is coming to the state of New York soon, no matter who wins the governor’s race.
Cannabis has become an issue that no longer can be ignored.
Do you think Cynthia Nixon would make a good governor of New York? Let us know in the comments.
Good read!