With so much going on in the run-up to 2020, the legalization (open in new tab) and decriminalization of marijuana may not even cross your mind. But the topic is closely tied to criminal justice reform, and more Americans than ever support the legalization of marijuana. (Opens in new tab) If you are wondering where marijuana stands in the 2020 election, specifically, what presidential candidates think about legalization and decriminalization, and what policies are being voted on in which states, check out this guide.

According to Leafly, the nation's largest online marijuana resource, which boasts an extensive guide (open in new tab) to each measure, there are six states voting on marijuana bills this year:

Arizona, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota, where adult-only will vote on whether marijuana for recreational use will be legalized.

Mississippi and South Dakota will vote on whether to legalize medical marijuana.

Even if you are not personally interested in marijuana, its legalization and decriminalization will have far-reaching consequences.

First thing to know: there is a difference between decriminalization and legalization. (Open in new tab) Decriminalization means that instead of incarceration, law enforcement can use only fines, education, and treatment as a method of prosecution. Decriminalization would also erase the criminal records of those arrested for marijuana use, at least under Joe Biden's proposed plan. Even with decriminalization, marijuana would remain illegal, but with legalization, marijuana would be treated the same way as alcohol and nicotine.

Legalization of marijuana is a particularly important issue for young voters and other key demographics. It is also an important issue in states that really matter for the 2020 election, such as Florida and Colorado. But on a larger, more critical level, decriminalization of marijuana will contribute to criminal justice reform and begin to undo some of the injustices that have repeatedly targeted blacks in particular (opens in new tab). The "war on drugs," championed and emboldened by Presidents Nixon and Reagan, was badly misnamed and ultimately failed, particularly in its negative impact on blacks.

Today, just under half of all nonviolent arrests (1.5 million per year) are for marijuana; resources do not exist to prosecute all 17 million marijuana users, and prosecutions are selective along racial lines. Strict mandatory minimum sentences can result in long prison sentences for small amounts of marijuana. The impact of criminalization goes far beyond the courtroom, as schools and workplaces also include marijuana in drug testing.

The current administration continues to blame legal marijuana for causing violent crime (opens in new tab).

In 1994, Biden supported the Violent Crime Control Act (opens in new tab). The bill was controversial (opens in new tab) and, according to activists, contributed to more aggressive policing and mass incarceration. In the intervening years, however, he has diverged from that perspective, and Biden is now even more progressive than Obama on the issue.

Biden is not in favor of the legalization bill (open in new tab), but that is not because he is in favor of stricter drug laws. It seems to be all about public health and the research he feels is necessary to ensure safety. Nevertheless, Biden is in favor of decriminalization and is in favor of removing marijuana from the same category of Schedule 1 drugs as heroin and ecstasy and treating it like alcohol and nicotine. He is also in favor of legalizing medical marijuana (open in new tab) at the federal level and allowing states to determine their own policies.

During the vice presidential debate, Harris stated that the Biden-Harris administration would decriminalize marijuana.

During the 2016 campaign, the Trump administration, which initially said (open in new tab) that it would leave marijuana legalization to the states, has taken a tough anti-marijuana stance, saying it should be illegal at the federal level.

The FY2021 budget proposal (open in new tab) advocates eliminating protections in state medical marijuana laws and repealing policies (open in new tab) that keep federal prosecutors from prosecuting cases in states that have legalized marijuana. Currently, a person can still be prosecuted in any state that has legalized marijuana.