If you want to know the technical definitions and chemical components of weed, you have to ask Nick Mortillaro. A true weed nerd (I say with love and respect), Nick is also an expert in cannabis policy and business. In fact, Nick has a dispensary just a few blocks away from the Capitol: four minutes by car, 11 minutes on foot, and seven “yeehaws” by Lime scooter.
It was to his dispensary, Leaf & Legends, that Nick invited me to attend the Texas Hemp Candidate Forum during early voting. The idea: a civic dialogue on the future of hemp in Texas. The attendees: six Texas candidates, two Republicans and four Democrats. As everyone who knows me knows, I shun the two-party system. I am also not a politician and have no desire to be, as I hear they have to wear blazers pretty much every day and that’s really not my aesthetic.
Nevertheless, I attended because I am an honorable citizen, a dedicated columnist, and an intellectual stoner. I did it for you, reader.
The candidates sat down in a series of consecutive panels moderated by Shaun Salvaje, who possesses a patience I could only dream of. Despite the fact that the election has passed and most of these candidates lost, the common themes of the conversation point to some hope for the future. Although a small group of Republicans and Democrats certainly do not represent the full spectrum of experiences and political stances held by Texans, there were a few major points on which all the candidates seemed to agree:
The future of Texas cannabis should start with education.
Candidate Stephany Bauer (D) for HD 37 pointed out that health education used to be a graduation requirement in Texas. Cannabis is just one of the topics students are missing out on in their formal education, leaving it to peers, parents, and the internet to educate them on dangers or safe practices (remember D.A.R.E.?) “It’s not about the safety, it’s about the stigma. That this is something that is tainted or something that is dirty. We need to move forward and find the science behind it and say, hey, this is what it could help for. It helps our elderly. It helps our veterans. We need to have those conversations.”
Bauer, who lost her primary race, comes from an education background, and she wants people informed. “We need to educate not just the kids, but the parents.” She tied this back to one of her main messages on education: Schools don’t provide this information in part because they’re underfunded. “It’s a systemic issue.”
Sitting across from Bauer was Brandon Hawbaker (R), running to represent District 10 in the U.S. Congress. As a candidate who prides himself on protesting mask mandates and training with law enforcement, it was a surprise to hear him agree with Bauer’s points. Hawbaker, who ultimately came in dead last in a crowded Republican primary field, concurred that education is key, stating, “If people start to understand how safe cannabis is, how many benefits it has, all the advantages the cannabis industry has for the state of Texas, it’s going to become a lot easier for people to support that.” He summarized his stance with “I don’t support anybody who wants to take away anybody’s liberties, and that includes cannabis.”
Cannabis should be decriminalized and regulated.
All six candidates agreed that cannabis should be decriminalized and regulated, although they had different opinions on how that should be done. Gigs Hodges (D) for HD 49, who identified herself as a Democratic Socialist, stated that she wants to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline. She has been vocal about the importance of protecting and regulating the hemp industry, an essential step in disrupting that pipeline, as there are an inordinate amount of folks doing time for possession or sale of a product that can now be picked up at your local gas station.
Moderator Salvaje pushed the Democratic candidates on the industry issue, pointing out that while Republicans are known to be the “party of small business,” Democrats are often accused of being “the party of taxation to create regulation,” and asking how Democratic candidates can be more supportive of small businesses in the industry.
Justin Early (D) for CD 31 suggested that capitalism itself may be the problem, stating that we need regulation for safety and to allow the free market to thrive. Hodges argued that it is the fees that the states are imposing that are causing small businesses to suffer. Hawbaker thought the federal government should stay out of it completely and that we should make all decisions locally. Although candidates did not agree on the method and process of regulation, everyone agreed that rules need to be made and that prohibition is ill-advised.
The problems we have in Texas are not just Texas problems. It’s all connected.
Every candidate drove home a connection between the cannabis issue and other issues facing our state: affordability, education, law enforcement, and business. Timothy Mabry (R) – who eventually placed second in the Lt. Gov. primary race – was the most entertaining candidate, swaggering in wearing a cowboy hat and singing us a song about how “Dan Patrick is a dinosaur” to the tune of the Barney theme song.
Mabry told us that not long ago, he was on the same page as most Republicans. “I thought cannabis, weed, sticky icky… devil’s lettuce… I thought it was a bad thing.” When Mabry learned about the healing effects the hemp plant can have on farmland, he questioned why it had been criminalized. He talked about the fear campaign in Texas, particularly in the Valley, being rooted in racism rather than concern for the health of citizens.
“We have a lot of stupid infighting,” he stated. “Most people don’t care about who’s going to the bathroom. They may not agree with it, they have an opinion, but at the end of the day they want to live their life and not go to jail. They want to be able to drive down the fucking road and not be in two hours worth of traffic just to go five miles… We have a water crisis. Those are our top priorities and if there’s someone you don’t agree with, you can hash it out.”
My favorite part of the forum? We took a break at 4:20.
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This article appears in March 20 • 2026.