Democrats are increasingly embracing looser restrictions on marijuana – and a growing number of Republicans are joining them, marking a shift in the politics of cannabis.

As Democrats try to regain control of Congress in the November elections and make gains in state races, some party strategists are wagering that being firmly on the side of easing marijuana laws will help boost turnout among millennials, a key bloc in the Democratic coalition. Many of those voters have sat out recent midterm contests.

While pot enthusiasts celebrated their unofficial “4/20” holiday on Friday, Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., announced his support for decriminalizing marijuana at the federal level. Echoing others who have revised their positions, Schumer said his thinking had “evolved.”

Democrats are not alone in moving toward greater acceptance of a drug once broadly seen as taboo. Schumer’s new stance came a week after a top Republican senator announced an agreement with President Trump to keep his state’s legalization of recreational marijuana protected from federal interference.

Former House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, recently joined the board of advisers for a company that cultivates and dispenses cannabis. Boehner was previously an opponent of decriminalizing marijuana.

The developments mirror a change in public opinion as well as an uptick in the number of states that have legalized some form of marijuana use. Republicans, who have long advocated protecting states’ rights, have increasingly moved to shield them from federal intervention.

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As they gear up for the fall campaign, both parties are trying to energize their political bases to turn out at the polls. For Democrats, who have embraced the most liberal platform in decades, marijuana reform is another issue they hope will enliven their core voters.

“This motivates young people because it’s a question of freedom of justice,” said Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii, part of a younger, more liberal generation of Democratic lawmakers.

In a written statement announcing his decision, Schumer said “there’s no better time than the present” to decriminalize marijuana.

He said the legislation he plans to release would remove it from the list of scheduled substances under the Controlled Substances Act.


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