Politics Friday

Politics Friday: How will the grow go? A look at Minnesota’s future with cannabis

A marijuana plant grows
Recreational marijuana became legal in Minnesota on Aug. 1, 2023.
Jim Mone | AP

By this time next year, Minnesota might have quite a few new stores where people can buy marijuana in various forms. The goal is for an early 2025 rollout of licensed retail locations.

But will there be enough supply to meet demand — and keep prices from rising too high? And what’s going on with the effort to clear records of people who had past marijuana convictions?

MPR News host Brian Bakst talked with a couple of experts about keeping tabs on expungement of certain prior cannabis-related records and the growing business of cannabis sales.

a group of university students
From left to right: MPR News politics fellow Ellie Roth sits with Thomas Knutson, Jack McGregor and Samia Abdulle for a conversation about their views on politics on the state and national level on April 8.
Matthew Alvarez | MPR News

MPR News also had a peer-led conversation with a three Generation Z voters about how they’re approaching the coming election.

Later, a taste of sounds and voices from the Capitol and some insight from members of our MPR News politics team.

Guests:  

  • Bryant Jones is a plant scientist and a subject matter expert in cannabis cultivation for Minnesota’s Cannabis Advisory Council.  

  • Jim Rowader is the executive director for the Cannabis Expungement Board Minnesota Department of Corrections and a board member of the Minnesota Justice Research Center.

  • Samia Abdulle is a student at the University of Minnesota.

  • Jack McGregor is a student at the University of Minnesota.

  • Thomas Knutson is a student at the University of Minnesota.

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