South Carolina Gubernatorial Opponents Spar Over Cannabis Legalization, Gov. McMaster Vs. Joe Cunningham

South Carolina is one of the few states where both medical and recreational cannabis is still illegal.

The last attempt to enact policy reform failed in May when the South Carolina House found a way to kill seven years of efforts to enact what was considered the country's most restrictive medical cannabis law. Lawmakers eliminated the measure on a technicality over sales tax.

Gubernatorial candidate Joe Cunningham (D) condemned Gov. Henry McMaster (R) and the state legislature following the decision.

"Gov. McMaster and his allies in the legislature could screw up a two-car parade. This is a historic failure of leadership by this governor and legislators to pass a watered-down version of the most conservative medical marijuana bill in the entire country," Cunningham said in a statement. "If Henry McMaster wanted this bill to pass, it would have passed a long time ago. But the reality is he doesn't support this bill and he never did."

Shortly after, Cunningham won the Democratic nomination for governor. Since then, he's made several promises, including the legalization of recreational marijuana and sports gambling. He has also repeated on several occasions that there's more than a three-decade gap between him and McMaster, who is running for a second term.

In a recent press conference, Cunningham called McMaster an obstructionist to the legalization of medical and recreational marijuana, adding that his thinking is "outdated and unpopular" in addition to hurting veterans, reported Post and Courier.

Cunningham added that McMaster's disinterest in either issue is outdated and puts marijuana as an alternative to those suffering from PTSD out of reach.

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