North Carolina state Representative Kelly Alexander (D-107) said he is meeting with other lawmakers to discuss legalizing cannabis this week, CBS 17 reports.
Rep. Alexander said that he’s hoping to push the idea of legalizing with plenty of local control, much the same way North Carolina currently regulates alcohol.
“We have dry counties. We have wet counties. We have portions of counties that may be wet, and the rest of them are dry. All of those are driven by local option decisions. Either by the decisions of local-elected boards, or by votes of the people.” — North Carolina Rep. Kelly Alexander (D) to CBS
The North Carolina chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) backs Rep. Alexander’s move. Abner Brown, a NORML representative, said the organization is organizing supporters for a rally in January at the state capitol in Raleigh.
“We’ve sent letters out and have contacted all of our elected officials in North Carolina to get their responses about how they felt about cannabis reform,” Brown said.
Though both Rep. Alexander and NORML are looking to advance the state towards legalization, resistance to pro-cannabis reforms remains throughout North Carolina.
“It’s time now for the legislators in North Carolina to catch up with the people,” Rep. Alexander told CBS.