Voters will decide 35 U.S. Senate seats on November 3, with marijuana policy among the issues that could be affected by the makeup of the next Congress. The election includes the 33 regularly scheduled Senate races, along with special elections in Florida and Ohio.
The following guide examines the leading candidates in each of the 35 races, including significant third-party and independent contenders where applicable. Candidate positions and records are current through October 6.
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Alabama: Everett Wess vs. Barry Moore
Everett Wess (Democrat): No clear public position from Wess on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, rescheduling or marijuana banking reform was identified during a review of his campaign materials and public statements. Wess has not previously served in Congress, so he has no federal marijuana voting record.
Barry Moore (Republican): Moore has a mixed congressional record. In a 2020 candidate survey, he strongly disagreed with recreational marijuana legalization. However, as a member of the U.S. House, Moore voted for the SAFE Banking Act in 2021 and for marijuana research legislation in 2022. He voted against the MORE Act in 2022, which would have removed marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act and eliminated federal criminal penalties for possession and distribution.
That record places Moore among lawmakers who have supported targeted marijuana reforms without endorsing comprehensive federal legalization.
Alaska: Mary Peltola vs. Dan S. Sullivan
Mary Peltola (Democrat): Peltola has explicitly supported federal marijuana legalization. During her previous tenure in the U.S. House, she also signed onto marijuana banking legislation intended to protect financial institutions serving state-legal businesses.
Peltola did not enter Congress until August 2022, after the House’s April 2022 vote on the MORE Act, so she did not cast a vote on that legislation.
Dan Sullivan (Republican): Senator Sullivan has supported significant federal protections for state marijuana laws without calling for nationwide legalization. He co-sponsored the STATES Act, which would have prevented federal marijuana prohibitions from applying to people complying with qualifying state marijuana laws.
Sullivan described marijuana legalization as a matter of states’ rights, specifically citing Alaska voters’ decision to legalize marijuana. He has also supported federal banking protections for state-legal marijuana businesses, including as a co-sponsor of the SAFER Banking Act.
The Alaska race therefore features two candidates who have supported substantial changes to federal marijuana policy, although Peltola has gone further by endorsing federal legalization.
Arkansas: Hallie Shoffner vs. Tom Cotton
Hallie Shoffner (Democrat): No detailed public position on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, banking or rescheduling was identified from Shoffner. She does not have a congressional voting record.
Tom Cotton (Republican): Senator Cotton has been an outspoken opponent of loosening federal marijuana restrictions. In December 2025, Cotton joined other senators in urging the Trump administration to keep marijuana in Schedule I rather than move it to Schedule III.
More recently, Cotton has focused on illegal marijuana cultivation, including a September 2026 letter seeking a Justice Department investigation into Chinese transnational criminal organizations operating illegal marijuana grows.
His opposition to Schedule III represents one of the clearest anti-rescheduling positions among Senate incumbents running this year.
Colorado: John Hickenlooper vs. Mark Baisley
John Hickenlooper (Democrat): Senator Hickenlooper is among the Senate’s more active supporters of federal marijuana reform. He supports complete removal of marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act rather than simply placing it in a lower schedule.
Hickenlooper is a co-sponsor of the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, reintroduced in July, which would federally deschedule marijuana. He has also introduced legislation directing the federal government to prepare a regulatory system for eventual legalization and has supported expungement, marijuana banking reform and expanded research.
Mark Baisley (Republican): Baisley has a mixed, issue-specific marijuana record in the Colorado Legislature. He supported a 2021 law expanding access to cannabis-based medicine in schools and voted for legislation allowing certain marijuana products to be redesignated from the recreational market to the medical market.
More recently, Baisley voted against a 2026 measure allowing certain terminally ill patients in health care facilities to use medical marijuana. No clear statement endorsing or opposing federal legalization, rescheduling or marijuana banking was identified.
Delaware: Chris Coons vs. Michael Katz
Chris Coons (Democrat): Senator Coons has supported several incremental federal marijuana reforms, including banking protections and expanded medical marijuana research. He has co-sponsored federal marijuana banking legislation and has expressed openness to reconsidering marijuana’s placement in Schedule I.
Coons has historically been more cautious about full nationwide recreational legalization than senators who have sponsored comprehensive descheduling legislation, but his record supports substantial changes to existing federal marijuana policy.
Michael Katz (Republican): Katz, a physician and former Delaware state senator, has not made marijuana reform a prominent part of his 2026 Senate campaign, and no clear current position on federal adult-use legalization, Schedule III or marijuana banking was identified.
However, Katz supported Delaware’s medical marijuana legislation while serving in the state Senate. In 2011, he voted for legislation establishing the state’s medical marijuana program and spoke in support of providing patients with access to marijuana for medical purposes.
Katz won the Republican nomination in September.
Florida Special Election: Angie Nixon vs. Ashley Moody
Angie Nixon (Democrat): Nixon, a member of the Florida House, has called for federal marijuana decriminalization. Her Senate platform calls for shifting federal drug policy away from incarceration and toward treatment.
In 2026, Nixon sponsored HB 1061, which would have prohibited courts from denying or restricting parental rights solely because a parent is a qualified medical marijuana patient. It also would have prohibited a presumption of neglect or child endangerment based solely on that status.
The measure died in committee without a recorded committee or floor vote, but its introduction provides a specific example of Nixon’s support for protecting medical marijuana patients.
Ashley Moody (Republican): Senator Moody’s clearest marijuana record comes from her tenure as Florida attorney general. Her office fought the state’s proposed adult-use marijuana constitutional amendment before the Florida Supreme Court, arguing that the proposal should not qualify for the ballot.
That litigation centered substantially on the initiative’s ballot language and legal requirements, but it placed Moody’s office squarely against the effort to put recreational legalization before Florida voters.
Moody was appointed to the Senate in January 2025. No major Senate marijuana reform vote has occurred during her short tenure that provides a comparable roll-call record.
Nixon and Moody are the two major-party contenders, although independent candidate Neil Gillespie is also on the ballot.
Georgia: Jon Ossoff vs. Mike Collins
Jon Ossoff (Democrat): Senator Ossoff has explicitly called for legalizing, regulating and taxing marijuana nationally. His position therefore goes beyond Schedule III and would eliminate federal prohibition rather than simply move marijuana to another controlled-substance category.
Mike Collins (Republican): Collins has served in the U.S. House since 2023, meaning he entered Congress after the House’s major 2021 SAFE Banking and 2022 MORE Act votes.
However, he has a recorded vote on medical marijuana access. In June 2024, Collins voted against an amendment allowing Department of Veterans Affairs clinicians to recommend medical marijuana and complete paperwork for veterans participating in state medical marijuana programs.
No comprehensive public position on federal legalization, rescheduling or marijuana banking was identified from his campaign materials.
Idaho: Todd Achilles vs. Jim Risch
Idaho’s race is unusual because there is no Democratic nominee on the November ballot. Independent Todd Achilles is among the candidates challenging Republican Senator Jim Risch, along with Libertarian Matt Loesby and independent Natalie Fleming.
Todd Achilles (Independent): Achilles has served in the Idaho House, and although no clear comprehensive position on federal marijuana legalization, rescheduling or marijuana banking was identified, he does have a relevant state legislative record.
In 2025, Achilles voted against a proposed constitutional amendment that would have declared the Idaho Legislature the sole authority to legalize marijuana and other controlled substances in the state, preventing legalization through the initiative process.
The vote does not establish his position on federal legalization or Schedule III, but it places him against restricting marijuana-policy changes exclusively to the Legislature.
Jim Risch (Republican): Senator Risch has directly opposed federal marijuana rescheduling. In December 2025, he participated in a Senate effort urging the administration to maintain marijuana’s Schedule I classification rather than moving it to Schedule III.
That places Risch among the incumbents with a documented record opposing one of the most significant recent federal changes in marijuana policy.
Illinois: Juliana Stratton vs. Don Tracy
Juliana Stratton (Democrat): Stratton has explicitly endorsed federal marijuana legalization. During a June 2026 appearance at a marijuana industry event, the Illinois lieutenant governor said she wants to see marijuana legalized federally and pointed to Illinois’ regulated adult-use system as a model.
Stratton previously served in the Illinois House, but she had left the legislature and become lieutenant governor by the time Illinois enacted recreational marijuana legalization in 2019, so she did not cast a legislative vote on the final legalization bill.
Don Tracy (Republican): No clear public position from Tracy on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, rescheduling or banking reform was identified. Tracy, a lawyer and former Illinois Republican Party chairman, has not served in Congress and therefore has no federal marijuana voting record.
Iowa: Josh Turek vs. Ashley Hinson
Josh Turek (Democrat): Turek supports legalizing, regulating and taxing marijuana. His position is reinforced by his record in the Iowa House, where he co-sponsored legislation to establish a regulated adult-use marijuana market.
Ashley Hinson (Republican): Hinson has a more incremental record. She has supported medical marijuana expansion and research while opposing comprehensive federal legalization.
In Congress, Hinson voted for the SAFE Banking Act in 2021, against the MORE Act in 2022 and for the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act in 2022. Before entering Congress, she also voted in the Iowa Legislature for legislation authorizing and expanding the state’s medical marijuana program.
Hinson has said she supports a robust medical program while expressing concern about unrestricted recreational legalization.
Kansas: Adam Hamilton vs. Roger Marshall
Adam Hamilton (Democrat): No clear public position on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, banking reform or rescheduling was identified from Hamilton’s campaign.
Roger Marshall (Republican): Senator Marshall has opposed moving marijuana to Schedule III. He was among the senators who urged the administration in December 2025 to maintain marijuana’s Schedule I status.
His documented position therefore puts him against federal rescheduling, although that does not by itself establish his position on every narrower marijuana proposal that could come before Congress.
Kentucky: Charles Booker vs. Andy Barr
Charles Booker (Democrat): Booker supports marijuana legalization and has a lengthy state legislative record on the issue. During his tenure in the Kentucky House, Booker sponsored legislation addressing marijuana legalization and regulation, medical marijuana, possession penalties and expungement.
He has also called for federal marijuana reform that includes clearing past convictions.
Andy Barr (Republican): Barr’s House voting record shows support for some marijuana reforms but opposition to legalization.
Barr voted for the SAFE Banking Act and marijuana research legislation, but against the MORE Act’s federal descheduling and legalization provisions. Earlier in his congressional career, he also opposed amendments designed to prevent federal interference with state medical marijuana programs.
At the same time, Barr has expressed support for research into the therapeutic potential of cannabinoids and backed financial-service protections involving hemp and CBD.
The result is a clear distinction between Booker’s support for legalization and Barr’s narrower approach centered on research and certain business protections.
Louisiana: Jamie Davis vs. Julia Letlow
Jamie Davis (Democrat): No clear current federal marijuana-policy position on adult-use legalization, medical marijuana, rescheduling or banking reform was identified from Davis’ 2026 Senate campaign.
Davis previously ran for the Louisiana House, but available records do not provide a sufficiently clear basis to characterize his position on the major federal marijuana reforms that could come before the Senate.
Julia Letlow (Republican): Letlow has a clear House voting record. She voted for federal medical marijuana research legislation in 2022 but against both the MORE Act and the SAFE Banking Act.
That means Letlow supported expanding research while voting against both comprehensive federal descheduling and legislation protecting banks that work with state-legal marijuana businesses.
Davis and Letlow are the two candidates listed in Louisiana’s November Senate contest.
Maine: Troy Jackson vs. Susan Collins
Troy Jackson (Democrat): Jackson has a lengthy Maine legislative record that includes support for the state’s regulated marijuana system. He backed implementation of Maine’s voter-approved adult-use marijuana law and has supported expansions of medical marijuana access, including legislation involving marijuana treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder.
His record therefore indicates support for both medical marijuana and a legal regulated recreational market at the state level.
Susan Collins (Republican): Senator Collins has supported several incremental federal reforms, most notably legislation protecting financial institutions that serve state-legal marijuana businesses. She has co-sponsored federal marijuana banking legislation and has supported protections for state medical marijuana programs.
Collins has generally taken a more incremental approach than senators advocating full federal descheduling.
Jackson became the Democratic nominee after the party replaced its original nominee during the summer.
Massachusetts: Ed Markey vs. John Deaton
Ed Markey (Democrat): Senator Markey supports comprehensive federal marijuana reform. He is a co-sponsor of the 2026 Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, which would remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, end federal prohibition and provide for expungement and other criminal justice reforms.
Markey has also supported marijuana banking legislation. In April 2023, he supported the procedural effort to advance legislation requiring Department of Veterans Affairs marijuana studies and clinical trials involving chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder.
John Deaton (Republican): Deaton has not articulated a detailed position on federal marijuana legalization, Schedule III, medical marijuana or marijuana banking. During his 2024 Senate campaign, he did not respond to a Marijuana Policy Project questionnaire addressing federal marijuana policy.
Deaton has, however, expressed opposition to relying on marijuana and other newly legalized activities as sources of additional tax revenue. That position provides some indication of his approach to marijuana taxation but does not establish whether he supports or opposes federal legalization.
Michigan: Abdul El-Sayed vs. Mike Rogers
Abdul El-Sayed (Democrat): El-Sayed has explicitly supported marijuana legalization. He has argued that legalization is both a civil-rights issue and a way to facilitate better medical research, while also supporting expungement of nonviolent marijuana possession records.
Mike Rogers (Republican): Rogers represented Michigan in the U.S. House from 2001 through 2015. During that period, he voted against a congressional amendment designed to prevent the Justice Department from using federal money to interfere with state medical marijuana programs.
Rogers’ congressional service ended before the House’s later votes on the MORE Act and SAFE Banking Act, so there is no comparable vote from him on those major measures.
Minnesota: Peggy Flanagan vs. Michele Tafoya
Peggy Flanagan (Democrat): Flanagan was lieutenant governor when Minnesota enacted adult-use marijuana legalization in 2023 and was part of the Walz-Flanagan administration that supported creating a regulated recreational market.
The administration’s 2023 budget proposal explicitly included a framework to legalize and regulate adult-use marijuana.
Flanagan previously served in the Minnesota House, but she left the Legislature before the final adult-use legalization bill was enacted, meaning she did not cast a vote on that legislation.
Michele Tafoya (Republican): No clear public position on marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, banking reform or rescheduling was identified from Tafoya’s campaign. She has not served in legislative office and has no marijuana-related voting record.
Mississippi: Scott Colom vs. Cindy Hyde-Smith
Scott Colom (Democrat): Colom has served as a district attorney rather than a legislator, and no clear public position on federal marijuana legalization, rescheduling or marijuana banking was identified.
Cindy Hyde-Smith (Republican): Senator Hyde-Smith has opposed moving marijuana to Schedule III. She joined the December 2025 Senate effort urging the administration to retain marijuana in Schedule I.
In April 2023, Hyde-Smith also voted against advancing legislation requiring Department of Veterans Affairs marijuana studies and clinical trials involving veterans with chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder. This was a procedural vote, not a vote on final passage.
Montana: Kurt Alme vs. Seth Bodnar vs. Alani Bankhead
Montana has a larger field than most states. Republican Kurt Alme and independent Seth Bodnar have emerged as the two leading contenders, while Democrat Alani Bankhead and Libertarian Kyle Austin are also on the ballot.
Kurt Alme (Republican): Alme’s record as U.S. attorney for Montana includes both marijuana enforcement policy and public criticism of recreational legalization.
After then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Cole Memo in 2018, Alme said his office would continue applying general federal prosecution principles to marijuana cases, focusing particularly on people presenting the greatest safety threats to communities.
In October 2020, Alme authored a commentary published by the Department of Justice warning Montana voters about the state’s recreational marijuana legalization initiatives. He argued that legalization would increase marijuana use and traffic risks and raised concerns about youth exposure and public health.
Those statements document his historical criticism of recreational legalization, although no definitive 2026 campaign position on federal legalization, Schedule III or marijuana banking was identified.
Seth Bodnar (Independent): No clear comprehensive position on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, rescheduling or marijuana banking was identified from Bodnar’s campaign materials. Bodnar, the president of the University of Montana and a former Army Green Beret, has not served in Congress and therefore has no federal marijuana voting record.
Alani Bankhead (Democrat): No clear public position on marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, banking or federal scheduling was identified from Bankhead’s campaign materials.
Nebraska: Dan Osborn vs. Pete Ricketts
Nebraska’s ballot contains several candidates, but independent Dan Osborn and Republican Senator Pete Ricketts are the principal contenders.
Dan Osborn (Independent): Osborn supports medical marijuana and has pledged to defend Nebraska voters’ decision to legalize it. His campaign says he would support implementation of medical marijuana and keep government from interfering in treatment decisions between patients and doctors. He has also expressed support for moving marijuana to Schedule III.
Osborn’s positions also include reducing criminal penalties. In a NORML candidate questionnaire, he explicitly supported decriminalizing simple possession, criticized imprisonment for marijuana use and argued against the lifelong consequences of criminal records for nonviolent offenders.
Pete Ricketts (Republican): Senator Ricketts has opposed several major marijuana reforms. In 2023, he opposed the SAFER Banking Act as it advanced through the Senate Banking Committee. He also joined the December 2025 Senate effort opposing Schedule III and supporting continued Schedule I status.
In April 2023, Ricketts voted against the procedural effort to advance legislation requiring Department of Veterans Affairs marijuana studies and clinical trials involving chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Ricketts also introduced legislation with Senator James Lankford to prevent marijuana businesses from gaining access to federal business expense deductions following rescheduling. That proposal would preserve tax restrictions that otherwise would be affected by a move out of Schedule I or II.
New Hampshire: Chris Pappas vs. John E. Sununu
Chris Pappas (Democrat): Pappas supports federal marijuana decriminalization and removing marijuana from Schedule I, but his congressional record also illustrates disagreements over how reform should be structured.
Pappas voted against the MORE Act in both 2020 and 2022, saying he supported decriminalization and ending Schedule I status but objected to provisions in the bill. He voted for SAFE Banking in 2019 and 2021 and for marijuana research legislation.
John E. Sununu (Republican): Sununu has said states should largely be allowed to determine their own marijuana policies without federal interference. Asked in 2025 about nationwide marijuana legalization, Sununu said he would need to examine federal scheduling questions but argued that states had already moved considerably on the issue and that the federal government should generally stay out and allow states to make their own decisions.
Sununu previously served in both the U.S. House and Senate, but his congressional tenure ended in 2009, before most of the major marijuana reform legislation now used to compare federal lawmakers. He has not clearly endorsed nationwide legalization, Schedule III or federal marijuana banking legislation.
New Jersey: Cory Booker vs. Justin Murphy
Cory Booker (Democrat): Senator Booker is one of Congress’ most prominent supporters of comprehensive marijuana legalization.
In July, Booker reintroduced the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act with Senator Chuck Schumer and Senator Ron Wyden. The bill would remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, establish a federal regulatory structure, expunge certain federal marijuana offenses and direct resources toward communities disproportionately affected by marijuana prohibition.
Booker has also supported marijuana banking, medical access and criminal justice reforms throughout his Senate tenure.
Justin Murphy (Republican): Murphy has explicitly criticized marijuana legalization on his campaign website, arguing that it harms young people and calling for a nationwide campaign against drug use modeled on the 1980s.
His platform establishes opposition to marijuana legalization, although it does not separately specify his positions on medical marijuana access, Schedule III or banking protections for state-legal businesses. Murphy has no congressional voting record.
New Mexico: Ben Ray Luján vs. Larry Marker
Ben Ray Luján (Democrat): Senator Luján supports comprehensive marijuana reform and is a co-sponsor of the 2026 Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act.
That legislation would federally deschedule marijuana rather than merely keep it within the Controlled Substances Act at Schedule III. Luján has also supported federal marijuana banking protections and other reforms affecting state-legal markets. His sponsorship of the 2026 descheduling bill is recorded in federal legislative records.
Larry Marker (Republican): No clear public position on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, rescheduling or banking reform was identified from Marker.
North Carolina: Roy Cooper vs. Michael Whatley
Roy Cooper (Democrat): Former Governor Cooper has supported several marijuana reforms but historically stopped short of embracing broad recreational legalization.
As governor, Cooper called for decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana and supported pardons for simple marijuana possession. He also expressed support for North Carolina establishing a medical marijuana program.
His record can therefore be characterized as supportive of medical access and possession decriminalization, while being more cautious on a commercial recreational market.
Michael Whatley (Republican): No detailed public position on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, Schedule III or marijuana banking was identified from Whatley. Whatley, a former Republican National Committee chairman, has not held legislative office and has no congressional marijuana voting record.
Ohio Special Election: Sherrod Brown vs. Jon Husted
Sherrod Brown (Democrat): Former Senator Brown played a major role in advancing federal marijuana banking reform while serving as chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.
In September 2023, Brown brought the SAFER Banking Act before the committee, where it advanced 14-9. Brown argued that state-legal marijuana businesses needed access to financial services and also called for addressing the broader damage caused by marijuana prohibition, expanding research and improving access for veterans.
Jon Husted (Republican): Senator Husted has taken a more limited position. He supports medical marijuana in restricted circumstances and supporting banking protections for state-legal businesses while opposing broad federal recreational legalization and decriminalization.
Husted has favored allowing states to make their own marijuana policy decisions and has been more skeptical of broader federal reform, including rescheduling.
Husted was appointed to the Senate in 2025, while Brown previously represented Ohio in the chamber. Libertarian Bill Redpath and independent Gregory Levy are also running.
Oklahoma: N’Kiyla “Jasmine” Thomas vs. Kevin Hern
N’Kiyla “Jasmine” Thomas (Democrat): No comprehensive public marijuana position was identified from Thomas, and she has no congressional voting record.
Kevin Hern (Republican): Hern’s House record is mixed but generally resistant to broader federal marijuana reform.
He voted against the MORE Act’s federal legalization and descheduling provisions. He also voted against marijuana research legislation on multiple occasions.
At the same time, Hern voted for SAFE Banking in 2019 and 2021 and supported an amendment protecting state marijuana legalization laws from federal interference.
Hern’s record therefore separates state protections and banking from legalization itself: he has backed some protections for existing legal markets while opposing federal descheduling.
Oregon: Jeff Merkley vs. David Smith
Jeff Merkley (Democrat): Senator Merkley has been one of Congress’ leading architects of marijuana banking reform and also supports full federal legalization.
Merkley introduced both the SAFE Banking Act and its successor, the SAFER Banking Act. He has said moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III is an improvement but does not go far enough, calling instead for complete descheduling.
Merkley is also a co-sponsor of the 2026 Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act.
David Brock Smith (Republican): Smith has a mixed marijuana record from his service in the Oregon Legislature. In 2017, he supported legislation establishing the Oregon Cannabis Commission, and in 2019 he voted for legislation authorizing Oregon to enter agreements allowing interstate marijuana commerce if permitted under federal law.
More recently, Smith voted against a 2026 measure expanding the conditions that can qualify a patient for Oregon’s medical marijuana program. In 2025, he also championed legislation targeting property owners who knowingly allow illegal marijuana cultivation on their land. His legislative record reflects involvement in marijuana regulation and enforcement, although no clear position on federal legalization, Schedule III or marijuana banking was identified.
Rhode Island: Jack Reed vs. Raymond McKay
Jack Reed (Democrat): Senator Reed has supported several incremental federal marijuana reforms, including banking protections for state-legal marijuana businesses and protections preventing federal interference with state medical marijuana programs.
Reed’s record is less centered on marijuana legislation than senators such as Cory Booker, Jeff Merkley or John Hickenlooper, but he has repeatedly supported measures designed to reduce conflicts between federal law and state medical and regulated marijuana policies.
Raymond McKay (Republican): No clear public marijuana position was identified from McKay on legalization, medical marijuana, rescheduling or marijuana banking. He has no congressional voting record.
South Carolina: Annie Andrews vs. Darline Graham
Annie Andrews (Democrat): Andrews has publicly supported legalizing marijuana for both medical and recreational use. Her position puts her in favor of a legal regulated market rather than maintaining federal prohibition.
Darline Graham (Republican): Graham entered the Senate only in July following the death of Senator Lindsey Graham. Given the short period she has served in Congress, she has not accumulated a meaningful marijuana-related Senate voting record.
No clear public position on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, Schedule III or marijuana banking was identified from Graham as of October 6.
The ballot also includes Constitution Party candidate Mark Hackett and Libertarian Kasie Whitener.
South Dakota: Brian Bengs vs. Mike Rounds
Brian Bengs (Independent): Bengs has supported decriminalizing personal marijuana use at the federal level and has argued that state voters’ decisions on medical and recreational marijuana should be respected.
His approach emphasizes both decriminalization and allowing states to establish their own marijuana laws.
Mike Rounds (Republican): Senator Rounds has generally opposed broad federal marijuana reform, including recreational legalization and federal decriminalization.
However, his record includes support for a narrower research proposal. In April 2023, Rounds voted to advance legislation requiring Department of Veterans Affairs studies and clinical trials involving marijuana, chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The procedural vote fell short of the 60 votes needed to advance. Rounds’ support for considering the research bill does not establish support for federal legalization, but it demonstrates that his opposition to broader reform has not extended to every marijuana-related proposal.
Tennessee: Marquita Bradshaw vs. Bill Hagerty
Marquita Bradshaw (Democrat): Bradshaw has previously expressed support for full recreational marijuana legalization, including during her 2020 Senate campaign.
Bill Hagerty (Republican): Senator Hagerty has opposed major federal marijuana reforms. He criticized the SAFER Banking Act as it moved through the Senate Banking Committee and sought changes focused on criminal organizations.
Hagerty was also among senators opposing the move of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III.
The candidates therefore offer substantially different approaches, with Bradshaw supporting legalization and Hagerty opposing major federal changes to marijuana’s legal status.
Texas: James Talarico vs. Ken Paxton
James Talarico (Democrat): Talarico has one of the more extensive state legislative marijuana records among this year’s non-incumbent Senate candidates.
In 2019, he voted for legislation reducing penalties for possession of up to one ounce of marijuana. In 2021, he introduced HB 4089, which proposed legalizing and regulating adult-use marijuana and expunging certain marijuana records. He also voted to expand Texas’ medical marijuana program.
Talarico supports a legal and regulated adult-use market at the federal level.
Ken Paxton (Republican): Paxton’s most visible marijuana record comes from his tenure as Texas attorney general. In 2024, his office sued five Texas cities over ordinances directing police not to enforce certain low-level marijuana possession laws.
Paxton later sued Dallas following voter approval of a similar marijuana decriminalization policy. His office argued that municipalities cannot adopt policies that conflict with Texas law.
Those actions establish a clear record of opposing local efforts to reduce marijuana possession enforcement, although Paxton framed the cases in terms of enforcing state law and limiting municipal authority.
Talarico and Paxton are the major-party nominees, although five additional candidates are running.
Virginia: Mark Warner vs. Bert Mizusawa
Mark Warner (Democrat): Senator Warner supports federal marijuana banking reform and has backed changing marijuana’s federal scheduling status.
Warner co-sponsored SAFE Banking legislation and supported advancing the SAFER Banking Act through the Senate Banking Committee. He has also argued that placing marijuana in Schedule I alongside drugs such as heroin did not make sense.
In April 2023, Warner supported the procedural effort to advance legislation requiring Department of Veterans Affairs marijuana studies and clinical trials involving veterans with chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Bert Mizusawa (Republican): No clearly defined public position on federal marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, Schedule III or marijuana banking was identified from Mizusawa. He has not previously served in Congress and therefore has no congressional marijuana voting record.
West Virginia: Rachel Fetty Anderson vs. Shelley Moore Capito
Rachel Fetty Anderson (Democrat): Fetty Anderson’s campaign has taken a comparatively direct position on marijuana. She has said marijuana use should not be criminalized, that commercial marijuana should be heavily regulated and that adults should be able to grow marijuana for personal use.
That places her in support of significant federal reform rather than continued criminal prohibition.
Shelley Moore Capito (Republican): Senator Capito has opposed moving marijuana to Schedule III. She joined the Senate effort urging the Trump administration to retain marijuana’s Schedule I classification.
Capito has generally opposed broader federal legalization and decriminalization as well, giving the West Virginia race one of the clearer differences between the two major-party candidates on marijuana policy.
Wyoming: James Byrd vs. Harriet Hageman
James Byrd (Democrat): Byrd has a notable marijuana reform record from his time in the Wyoming House. He repeatedly sponsored legislation that would have reduced penalties for possession of up to one ounce of marijuana, replacing the possibility of jail time with a civil fine.
Byrd also backed legislation that would have allowed certain nonresidents with valid medical marijuana authorization from another state to possess marijuana in Wyoming. His record indicates support for reducing penalties for low-level possession and providing some medical marijuana protections, although no clear current position on federal legalization, rescheduling or marijuana banking was identified from his 2026 campaign.
Harriet Hageman (Republican): Hageman entered the U.S. House in 2023, after the major House votes on SAFE Banking in 2021 and the MORE Act in 2022.
However, she has a recorded vote on medical marijuana access. In June 2024, Hageman voted against an amendment allowing Department of Veterans Affairs clinicians to recommend medical marijuana and complete paperwork for veterans participating in state medical marijuana programs.
No comprehensive marijuana platform addressing federal legalization, rescheduling and banking was identified from her 2026 Senate campaign materials.
