All the states where marijuana is legal — and 5 more that voted to legalize it in November

• Marijuana is legal for adults in 11 states and Washington D.C. Medical marijuana is legal in 34.
• New Jersey, Arizona, Montana, and South Dakota voted to legalize recreational marijuana in November’s elections.
• South Dakota also voted in favor of a medical-cannabis program, as did Mississippi.
• With a Democratic president and Congress, analysts say we can expect to see more federal cannabis legislation pass in the coming years.
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Marijuana legalization is spreading around the US. 

Since 2012, 15 states and Washington, DC, have legalized marijuana for adults over the age of 21. And 36 states have legalized medical marijuana — meaning that a majority of Americans now have some form of access to marijuana, whether medically or recreationally.

Four more states — New Jersey, Arizona, Montana, and South Dakota — just voted to legalize recreational cannabis, though it won’t become legal immediately. On top of that, voters in Mississippi backed the creation of a medical cannabis program.

Though Canada legalized marijuana federally in 2018, the US has not followed suit, forcing states to chart their own courses. As it stands, marijuana is still considered an illegal Schedule I drug by the US federal government.

Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election and the Democratic party’s control of Congress, could give marijuana a bigger boost in the US. The House in December voted on a bill to legalize marijuana and expunge the records of those convicted under previous laws, the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, though the legislation was considered a nonstarter when Republicans controlled the Senate.

Cowen analyst Vivien Azer said in a January 6 note that with a Democratic-controlled government, cannabis-related legislation — like the STATES Act or MORE Act — has a better chance of passing through Congress, creating big opportunities for the US industry.

“[W]e expect Congress will give cannabis companies access to commercial banking and insurance,” Azer wrote. “We also see medical cannabis being protected. Capital markets access is largely dependent upon enactment of either the STATES Act or the MORE Act.” 

Biden has said he would support federal decriminalization of the drug. Vice-president-elect Kamala Harris sponsored a previous version of the MORE Act in the Senate. A Democratic administration would sign that — or a similar legalization bill — into law if passed in the House and Senate.

Despite the political back-and-forth, most Americans want legal marijuana, according to recent polls. Sixty-seven percent of Americans polled by Pew Research said marijuana should be legal, with only 32% in opposition.

All the states where marijuana is legal: 

This article was first published in January 2018 and has been updated with new information about where cannabis is legal and the results from Georgia’s runoff elections. Melia Russell contributed to an earlier version of this report.