5th District Candidate Proudly Smokes Pot In Campaign Photo

CHICAGO, IL — A candidate for the 5th Congressional District of Illinois is gaining headlines after appearing in a campaign photo with a joint in hand. Dubbing himself the "Cannabis Candidate," Benjamin Thomas Wolf is calling for marijuana legalization in Illinois. The former federal agent and U.S. diplomat said the state is missing out on billions of dollars.

"Cannabis can provide a much-needed tax base for our city," Wolf said in a press release. "As a former federal law enforcement agent, I understand the manner in which legalizing cannabis can transform the criminal justice system in regard to high rates of incarceration for drug crimes as well as the unfair targeting of of marginalized communities."

Wolf, a human rights professor at Roosevelt University, is challenging incumbent Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., for the 5th district, which includes Chicago's North and Northwest Sides. Candidates Steven J. Schwartzberg and Sameena Mustafa are also primary challengers to Quigley.

Cook County commissioners voted to approve a recreational marijuana referendum, which will be on the primary ballot March 20.

"The people of Chicago and Cook County want to be the first in the Midwest to have access to legal recreational cannabis and I want them to know that I have made this one of my top policy priorities," Wolf stated in a press release.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle is also a proponent of legalizing marijuana for recreational use and like Wolf, advocates for the reduction of law enforcement resources that go to low-level marijuana possession cases.

Read also:

• Illinois Doctor Fighting Opioid Epidemic With Marijuana
• Commissioners Call For Referendum On Marijuana Legalization
• Give Opioid Users Access To Medical Marijuana: Senate Committee

Image courtesy of Wolf For Congress Campaign office.