Andrew Yang’s Forward Approach To Marijuana

By Terry Hacienda, The Fresh Toast on Jul 8, 2025

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The current political dust up has lead to talk of change…and Andrew Yang’s Forward Party is in the news

Andrew Yang and his Forward party are back in the news. After a messy breakup with the current president, Elon Musk is flirting with starting a new party. This has led him to Yang and his growing movement. Musk was supportive of cannabis legalization, but was unable to move the federal government to make a move. So what is Andrew Yang’s Forward approach to marijuana? In October 2021, former presidential candidate Andrew Yang officially launched the Forward Party, marking a bold step in reshaping American politics. Yang introduced the party in his book Forward: Notes on the Future of Our Democracyand officially shifted his voter registration from Democrat to Independent on October 4, 2021, laying the groundwork for Organized Third‑Party reform.

Yang’s vision for the Forward Party centers on overcoming partisan gridlock through systemic change. By late July 2022, it had merged with the Serve America Movement and the Renew America Movement, with Yang as co‑chair, aiming for ballot access in all 50 states by 2025. The party advocates for ranked‑choice voting, open primaries, independent redistricting, universal basic income, human‑centered capitalism, data rights, and modernized government—steering clear of heavy ideological demands and instead focusing on empowering voters locally. Yang has long been a vocal advocate for ending federal marijuana prohibition. During his 2020 presidential run, he called for full federal legalization, the removal of marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, and pardoning those jailed for non‑violent offenses. He emphasized social equity, stating that while some states have legalized recreational use, “thousands of Americans are locked away due to marijuana‑related offenses,” disproportionately affecting communities of color. Yang pledged to expunge federal convictions, release non‑violent offenders, and even symbolically “high‑five” those pardoned on April 20, aligning criminal justice reform with compassion On the campaign trail, Yang broadened the narrative, framing drug use primarily as a public health issue. Yang’s Forward Party platform emphasizes electoral innovation over partisan policy mandates. Yet, his personal commitment to legalizing marijuana, expunging records, and addressing racial injustice dovetails with his broader values of justice, equity, and human‑centered capitalism. It will be interesting to see if the latest political dust up will fuel Forward’s growth.

The Fresh Toast is a daily lifestyle platform with a side of cannabis. For more information, visit www.thefreshtoast.com.

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