Texas Senate, District 19
Reaches from San Antonio to the border. The incumbent filed a broad cannabis regulation bill in 2020 and joint-authored two more in 2025, and voted for SB 3 in March before voting against both successor hemp bills in the summer called sessions. The sequence is listed in date order.
How this score is worked out
Seven kinds of act move this number, and they do not count equally. A recorded vote counts 3, and so does authoring a bill or signing an executive action; signing on to somebody else’s bill counts 2. A statement or a questionnaire answer counts 2 as well, and an organisational endorsement counts 1. A vote takes its direction from the bill, whose effect is set out in advance; the rest take it from our reading of what was said, and each one below shows that reading and the reason for it. Acts shown with no number were examined and deliberately left out of the arithmetic, with a reason given.
- 2025-08-19 Consumable hemp, second called session SB 6 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 3
- 2025-08-18 Consumable hemp, second called session SB 6 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 3
- 2025-08-15 Regulate and tax cannabis SB 31 — signed on, counted as +2 at weight 3
- 2025-08-15 Defence to prosecution for possession SB 30 — signed on, counted as +1 at weight 3
- 2025-08-01 Consumable hemp, first called session SB 5 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 3
- 2025-07-30 Regulate and tax cannabis SB 54 — signed on, counted as +2 at weight 3
- 2025-07-30 Consumable hemp, first called session SB 5 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 3
- 2025-05-27 Texas Compassionate-Use Program HB 46 — signed on, counted as +1 at weight 2
- 2025-05-25 Consumable hemp and hemp-derived cannabinoids SB 3 — voted, counted as -2 at weight 3
- 2025-03-19 Consumable hemp and hemp-derived cannabinoids SB 3 — voted, counted as -2 at weight 3
- 2021-05-25 Low-THC cannabis for more conditions HB 1535 — voted, counted as +1 at weight 1.8
- 2021-05-25 Low-THC cannabis for more conditions HB 1535 — signed on, counted as +1 at weight 1.2
- 2021-05-24 Defence to prosecution for small amounts HB 1694 — voted, counted as +1 at weight 1.8
- 2021-05-21 Penalties for tetrahydrocannabinols HB 2593 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 1.8
- 2021-05-21 Penalties for tetrahydrocannabinols HB 2593 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 1.8
- 2020-11-09 Regulate and tax cannabis SB 140 — signed on, counted as +2 at weight 1.8
- 2019-05-24 Low-THC cannabis for more conditions HB 3703 — voted, counted as +1 at weight 0.9
- 2019-05-08 Low-THC cannabis for more conditions HB 3703 — voted, counted as +1 at weight 0.9
- 2019-04-30 Penalties for possession HB 63 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 0.9
- 2019-04-29 Penalties for possession HB 63 — voted, counted as +2 at weight 0.9
- 2019-04-11 Low-THC cannabis for more conditions HB 3703 — signed on, counted as +1 at weight 0.6
- 2017-05-03 Medical cannabis for debilitating conditions HB 2107 — signed on, counted as +1 at weight 0.6
- 2017-02-16 Penalties for possession HB 81 — signed on, counted as +2 at weight 0.6
- 2015-05-19 Texas Compassionate Use Act SB 339 — voted, counted as +1 at weight 0.9
- 2015-05-18 Texas Compassionate Use Act SB 339 — voted, counted as +1 at weight 0.9
Average on the −2 to +2 scale: 1.168. Full method and the bill table.
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Vote2015-05-18
Texas House: recorded Yea on Record Vote 1182, passage of SB 339 to third reading, the bill creating the Texas Compassionate-Use Program for low-THC cannabis, which carried 96 Yeas to 34 Nays. He sat in the Texas House for District 119 at the time. Identity: the journal prints a bare surname; the 84th House Journal’s own printed roll of members for that Legislature gives District 119 as Roland Gutierrez, and no other member of that House shared the surname.
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Vote2015-05-18
Texas House: recorded Nay on Record Vote 1180, the motion to table Amendment No. 1 by Representative Moody to SB 339, an amendment that would have changed the bill from a physician prescribing low-THC cannabis to a physician recommending it and added definitions of an adequate supply and of a caregiver. The motion to table prevailed, 99 Yeas to 32 Nays. The bill is captioned "relating to the medical use of low-THC cannabis and the regulation of related organizations and individuals; requiring a dispensing organization to obtain a license to dispense low-THC cannabis and any employee of a dispensing organization to obtain a registration; authorizing fees."
The journal prints this member in the Nay list as "Gutierrez"; the printed form is matched to this member against the whole membership of the 84th House, who sat for House District 119.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but deliberately left out of the score: This is a vote on a motion to table a floor amendment to Senate Bill 339, not a vote on the bill itself. A floor amendment, and a motion to table one, does not take the direction of the bill it is offered to, and this site does not assert a direction for it. The record is shown because the journal names the member, and it is kept out of the score.
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Vote2015-05-18
Texas House: recorded Nay on Record Vote 1181, the motion to table Amendment No. 2 by Representative Moody to SB 339, an amendment that would have added a physician recommendation alongside a prescription throughout the bill. The motion to table prevailed, 98 Yeas to 33 Nays. The bill is captioned "relating to the medical use of low-THC cannabis and the regulation of related organizations and individuals; requiring a dispensing organization to obtain a license to dispense low-THC cannabis and any employee of a dispensing organization to obtain a registration; authorizing fees."
The journal prints this member in the Nay list as "Gutierrez"; the printed form is matched to this member against the whole membership of the 84th House, who sat for House District 119.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but deliberately left out of the score: This is a vote on a motion to table a floor amendment to Senate Bill 339, not a vote on the bill itself. A floor amendment, and a motion to table one, does not take the direction of the bill it is offered to, and this site does not assert a direction for it. The record is shown because the journal names the member, and it is kept out of the score.
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Vote2015-05-19
Texas House: recorded Yea on Record Vote 1203, final House passage of SB 339, the bill creating the Texas Compassionate-Use Program for low-THC cannabis, which carried 108 Yeas to 38 Nays. He sat in the Texas House for District 119 at the time. Identity: the journal prints a bare surname; the 84th House Journal’s own printed roll of members for that Legislature gives District 119 as Roland Gutierrez, and no other member of that House shared the surname.
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Coauthored2017-02-16
Signed on as a coauthor of HB 81 in the 85th Legislature, which would have replaced the criminal penalty for possessing small amounts of marihuana with a civil penalty. It reached the House calendar and died there. The Legislature’s author table records the sign-on date as 2017-02-16.
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Coauthored2017-05-03
Signed on as a coauthor of HB 2107 in the 85th Legislature, which would have authorised the possession, use, cultivation, distribution and delivery of medical cannabis for patients with certain debilitating medical conditions. It died in committee. The Legislature’s author table records the sign-on date as 2017-05-03.
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Coauthored2019-02-26
Signed on as a joint author of HB 1325 (86R), regulating hemp production and the manufacture of consumable hemp products, on 2019-02-26.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site deliberately does not score HB 1325 (86th Legislature), so a record on it moves no number.
Why HB 1325 is not scored
Production and regulation of hemp — the 2019 bill that brought Texas into line with the federal hemp definition. It is an agricultural and licensing framework rather than an access measure, and it is read the same way as the other hemp-production bills here, so it is not scored. Its votes are still shown.
capitol.texas.gov, capitol.texas.gov, journals.house.texas.gov
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Coauthored2019-04-11
Signed on as a coauthor of HB 3703 in the 86th Legislature, which widened the medical conditions for which low-THC cannabis may be prescribed under the Compassionate-Use Program. It was enacted. The Legislature’s author table records the sign-on date as 2019-04-11.
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Vote2019-04-29
Texas House: recorded Yea on Record Vote 780, passage to engrossment of CSHB 63, reducing the criminal and licensing consequences of possessing small amounts of marihuana and drug paraphernalia, which carried 98 Yeas to 43 Nays.
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Vote2019-04-30
Texas House: recorded Yea on Record Vote 801, final House passage of HB 63, reducing the criminal and licensing consequences of possessing small amounts of marihuana and drug paraphernalia, which carried 103 Yeas to 42 Nays.
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Vote2019-05-08
Texas House: recorded Yea on Record Vote 1097, third-reading passage of HB 3703, widening the medical conditions for which low-THC cannabis may be prescribed under the Compassionate-Use Program, which carried 133 Yeas to 10 Nays.
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Vote2019-05-24
Texas House: recorded Yea on Record Vote 1824, the motion to concur in the Senate’s changes to HB 3703, the Compassionate-Use Program expansion, sending it to the Governor, which carried 136 Yeas to 5 Nays.
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Authored2020-11-09
Filed SB 140 as primary author, relating to the regulation of the cultivation, manufacture, distribution, sale, testing, possession and use of cannabis and cannabis products.
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Authored2021-03-12
Filed SB 1972 as primary author, relating to the definition of marihuana.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site deliberately does not score SB 1972 (87th Legislature), so a record on it moves no number.
Why SB 1972 is not scored
Redefines marihuana to include edible marihuana products and compounds used in e-cigarettes. Which way that runs depends on how the new definition interacts with the penalty groups those products fall under today, and that is a legal reading rather than something the bill text states. It is printed and not scored.
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Vote2021-05-21
Texas Senate: recorded Yea, and named in the printed Yeas roll, on final passage of HB 2593 as amended, moving possession of tetrahydrocannabinols into a new penalty group whose lowest tiers are misdemeanors, out of one where any amount is a felony. The Journal records the vote as 24 Yeas, 7 Nays.
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Vote2021-05-21
Texas Senate: recorded Yea, and named in the printed Yeas roll, on the motion to suspend the regular order of business to take up HB 2593 on its second reading; HB 2593 is the 2021 bill moving possession of tetrahydrocannabinols into a new penalty group whose lowest tiers are misdemeanors, out of one where any amount is a felony. The motion, made by Senator Johnson, prevailed 24 Yeas to 7 Nays. This is the procedural vote that brought the bill up; the passage to third reading that followed it, and the final passage, are listed separately.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score procedural motions, such as suspending a rule, postponing, recommitting or reconsidering, because such a motion decides how a bill is handled rather than what it does, and its scoring rules read this record as one.
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Vote2021-05-21
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the passage of HB 2593 to third reading on its second reading, the 2021 bill moving possession of tetrahydrocannabinols into a new penalty group whose lowest tiers are misdemeanors, out of one where any amount is a felony, which carried 24 Yeas to 7 Nays. The Senate Journal records this vote as the same as the previous roll call, the one taken moments earlier to bring the bill up, in which this member is named in the printed Yeas roll.
Final passage the same day is listed separately.
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Vote2021-05-21
Texas Senate: recorded Yea, and named in the printed Yeas roll, on the motion to suspend Senate Rule 7.18 and the constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several days, so that HB 2593 could be placed on its third reading and final passage the same day; HB 2593 is the 2021 bill moving possession of tetrahydrocannabinols into a new penalty group whose lowest tiers are misdemeanors, out of one where any amount is a felony.
The motion, made by Senator Johnson, prevailed 25 Yeas to 6 Nays. This is a procedural vote; the third-reading passage that followed it is listed separately.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score procedural motions, such as suspending a rule, postponing, recommitting or reconsidering, because such a motion decides how a bill is handled rather than what it does, and its scoring rules read this record as one.
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Vote2021-05-24
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the third-reading passage of HB 1694, creating a defence to prosecution for small-amount possession when a person seeks emergency help for an overdose, which carried 30 Yeas to 0 Nays, with one member absent-excused.
⚠️The journal prints only the tally for this vote. The Senate has 31 members, the journal's roll for the day names the senators present, and the yeas equal that number, so every senator present is recorded as voting Yea.
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Vote2021-05-24
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the motion to suspend Senate Rule 7.18 and the constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several days, so that HB 1694 could be placed on its third reading and final passage the same day; HB 1694 is the 2021 bill creating a defence to prosecution for small-amount possession when a person seeks emergency help for an overdose. The motion, made by Senator Schwertner, prevailed 30 Yeas to 0 Nays, with Senator Creighton absent-excused.
This is a procedural vote; the third-reading passage that followed it is listed separately.
⚠️The journal prints no list of Yeas for this vote; it names only the absent member. The Texas Senate has 31 members, and 30 Yeas, 0 Nays and the one named absence account for all of them, so every senator other than the absent member is recorded as voting Yea. This attribution is deduced from the size of the chamber and the named absence, not read off a printed list of names.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score procedural motions, such as suspending a rule, postponing, recommitting or reconsidering, because such a motion decides how a bill is handled rather than what it does, and its scoring rules read this record as one.
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Vote2021-05-25
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the third-reading passage of CSHB 1535, widening the medical conditions qualifying for low-THC cannabis under the Compassionate-Use Program, which carried 31 Yeas to 0 Nays.
⚠️The journal prints only the tally for this vote. The Senate has 31 members, the journal's roll for the day names the senators present, and the yeas equal that number, so every senator present is recorded as voting Yea.
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Coauthored2021-05-25
Was shown as a Senate co-sponsor of HB 1535, the 2021 Compassionate-Use Program expansion, on the motion of Senator Schwertner printed in the Senate Journal.
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Vote2021-05-25
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the motion to suspend Senate Rule 7.18 and the constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several days, so that CSHB 1535 could be placed on its third reading and final passage the same day; CSHB 1535 is the 2021 bill widening the medical conditions qualifying for low-THC cannabis under the Compassionate-Use Program. The motion, made by Senator Schwertner, prevailed 31 Yeas to 0 Nays.
This is a procedural vote; the third-reading passage that followed it is listed separately.
⚠️The journal prints only the tally for this vote. The Texas Senate has 31 members and the Yeas number 31, so every senator is recorded as voting Yea. This attribution is deduced from the size of the chamber, not read off a printed list of names.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score procedural motions, such as suspending a rule, postponing, recommitting or reconsidering, because such a motion decides how a bill is handled rather than what it does, and its scoring rules read this record as one.
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Vote2021-05-26
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the passage of CSHB 3948 to third reading, on the production and regulation of hemp and consumable hemp products. The Senate Journal prints: "CSHB 3948 as amended was passed to third reading by a viva voce vote. All Members are deemed to have voted "Yea" on the passage to third reading except as follows: Nays: Johnson."
⚠️The journal prints no list of yeas for this vote; it names only the single dissenter. The Texas Senate has 31 members, all 31 are recorded voting on the suspension motion taken immediately before, and the tally accounts for all 31, so every senator other than the named Nay is recorded as voting Yea. This attribution is deduced from the size of the chamber and the named exception, not read off a printed list of names.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site deliberately does not score HB 3948 (87th Legislature), so a record on it moves no number.
Why HB 3948 is not scored
Hemp and consumable hemp production and regulation. Read as an industry framework rather than an access measure; the direction is arguable, so it is not scored.
journals.senate.texas.gov, journals.senate.texas.gov, capitol.texas.gov
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Vote2021-05-26
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the third reading and final passage of CSHB 3948, on the production and regulation of hemp and consumable hemp products, which carried 30 Yeas to 1 Nay. The Senate Journal prints: "The bill was read third time and was passed by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1. Nays: Johnson."
⚠️The journal prints no list of yeas for this vote; it names only the single dissenter. The Texas Senate has 31 members, all 31 are recorded voting on the suspension motion taken immediately before, and the tally accounts for all 31, so every senator other than the named Nay is recorded as voting Yea. This attribution is deduced from the size of the chamber and the named exception, not read off a printed list of names.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site deliberately does not score HB 3948 (87th Legislature), so a record on it moves no number.
Why HB 3948 is not scored
Hemp and consumable hemp production and regulation. Read as an industry framework rather than an access measure; the direction is arguable, so it is not scored.
journals.senate.texas.gov, journals.senate.texas.gov, capitol.texas.gov
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Vote2021-05-26
Texas Senate: recorded Yea on the motion to suspend Senate Rule 7.18 and the constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several days, so that CSHB 3948 could be placed on its third reading and final passage the same day; CSHB 3948 is the 2021 bill on the production and regulation of hemp and consumable hemp products. The motion, made by Senator Perry, prevailed 31 Yeas to 0 Nays. This is a procedural vote; the third-reading passage that followed it is listed separately.
⚠️The journal prints only the tally for this vote. The Texas Senate has 31 members and the Yeas number 31, so every senator is recorded as voting Yea. This attribution is deduced from the size of the chamber, not read off a printed list of names.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site deliberately does not score HB 3948 (87th Legislature), so a record on it moves no number.
Why HB 3948 is not scored
Hemp and consumable hemp production and regulation. Read as an industry framework rather than an access measure; the direction is arguable, so it is not scored.
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Vote2025-03-19
Recorded Yea on final passage of CSSB 3 on third reading, the intoxicating-hemp-THC ban, which carried 26 Yeas to 5 Nays.
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Vote2025-03-19
Recorded Yea on the motion to suspend the constitutional three-day reading rule to place CSSB 3 on third reading, which carried 27 Yeas to 4 Nays.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score procedural motions, such as suspending a rule, postponing, recommitting or reconsidering, because such a motion decides how a bill is handled rather than what it does, and its scoring rules read this record as one.
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Vote2025-04-22
Texas Senate: recorded Nay, and named in the printed Nays roll, on passage to engrossment on second reading of CSSB 1870, which would bar a city or county from placing on the ballot any measure — including a charter amendment — directing that state drug or consumable hemp laws not be fully enforced, and from adopting a non-enforcement policy, with civil penalties of $25,000 for a first violation. The Journal records the vote as 23 Yeas, 8 Nays.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score floor amendments, because an amendment can point the opposite way to the bill it changes, and its scoring rules read this record as concerning one.
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Vote2025-04-23
Texas Senate: recorded Nay, and named in the printed Nays roll, on third-reading passage of CSSB 1870, which would bar a city or county from placing on the ballot any measure — including a charter amendment — directing that state drug or consumable hemp laws not be fully enforced, and from adopting a non-enforcement policy, with civil penalties of $25,000 for a first violation. The Journal records the vote as 23 Yeas, 8 Nays.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score floor amendments, because an amendment can point the opposite way to the bill it changes, and its scoring rules read this record as concerning one.
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Vote2025-05-25
Recorded Yea on the motion to concur in the House amendments to SB 3, the intoxicating-hemp-THC ban, which carried 25 Yeas to 6 Nays.
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Coauthored2025-05-27
Shown in the Senate Journal as a cosponsor of HB 46, the Compassionate Use Program expansion, on the motion of Senator Perry.
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Vote2025-05-27
The Senate passed CSHB 46, the Compassionate Use Program expansion, on third reading by 31 Yeas to 0 Nays. The journal records the totals only and prints no individual names for this vote, so it is recorded here as a unanimous act of the chamber rather than as a named vote.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site scores a vote only when its record states the member’s own Yea or Nay in a form its scoring rules read, and this record does not. A vote the journal prints only as a chamber total, with no names, is the usual case.
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Said2025-05-27
Speaking in the Texas Senate on the night of 27 May 2025, the day the Senate passed HB 46, the Compassionate Use Program expansion, said: “This body has always made a commitment to our veterans. But we also have a commitment to our kids, and it’s to keep them safe from narcotics that they shouldn’t be doing until they are 25 and under a medical setting”. Reported by the Texas Tribune the same night.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: A record of this kind counts only when this site has published a reading of its direction, with the reason for it, and none has been made for this one.
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Vote2025-06-01
The Senate adopted the conference committee report on HB 46, the Compassionate Use Program expansion, by 31 Yeas to 0 Nays. The journal records the totals only and prints no individual names for this vote, so it is recorded here as a unanimous act of the chamber rather than as a named vote.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site scores a vote only when its record states the member’s own Yea or Nay in a form its scoring rules read, and this record does not. A vote the journal prints only as a chamber total, with no names, is the usual case.
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Authored2025-07-30
Signed on as a joint author of SB 53, relating to the regulation of products derived from hemp, including consumable hemp products and hemp beverages.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site deliberately does not score SB 53 (89th Legislature, 1st called session), so a record on it moves no number.
Why SB 53 is not scored
A hemp industry framework — licensing, permits and product rules. The project already declines to score this family (see 87R HB 3948): it can tighten or legitimise the market depending on its terms, and the direction is arguable.
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Authored2025-07-30
Signed on as a joint author of SB 54, relating to the regulation of the cultivation, manufacture, sale, possession, use and taxation of cannabis and cannabis products.
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Vote2025-07-30
Recorded Nay on passage of SB 5 to engrossment on its second reading in the Texas Senate on 2025-07-30, in the first called session of the 89th Legislature. SB 5 is captioned "Relating to the regulation of certain products derived from hemp, including consumable hemp products and the hemp-derived cannabinoids contained in those products; requiring occupational licenses and registrations; imposing fees; creating criminal offenses; authorizing an administrative penalty."
The Senate Journal prints the whole roll: "SB 5 as amended was passed to engrossment by the following vote: Yeas 21, Nays 8. Yeas: Bettencourt, Birdwell, Blanco, Campbell, Creighton, Flores, Hall, A. Hinojosa, J. Hinojosa, Huffman, Hughes, King, Kolkhorst, Middleton, Nichols, Parker, Paxton, Perry, Schwertner, Sparks, West. Nays: Alvarado, Cook, Eckhardt, Gutierrez, Johnson, Menéndez, Miles, Zaffirini. Absent-excused: Hagenbuch."
The printed surname Gutierrez is resolved against the Texas Senate roster to this member, who holds Senate District 19.
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Vote2025-08-01
Recorded Nay on final passage of SB 5 of the first called session, regulating hemp-derived products, which carried 21 Yeas to 8 Nays.
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Authored2025-08-15
Filed SB 31 (892) as one of its primary authors on 2025-08-15, decriminalising the conduct, requiring an occupational licence and imposing a tax on cannabis.
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Authored2025-08-15
Filed SB 30 (892) as one of its primary authors on 2025-08-15, the regulation of products derived from hemp, including consumable hemp products and hemp beverages.
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Vote2025-08-18
Texas Senate: recorded Nay, and named in the printed Nays roll, on passage to engrossment of SB 6 on second reading, the second called session’s bill regulating consumable hemp products and the hemp-derived cannabinoids in them. The Journal records the vote as 22 Yeas, 8 Nays.
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Vote2025-08-18
Texas Senate: recorded Nay, and named in the printed Nays roll, on the motion to suspend the regular order of business to take up SB 6 of the second called session on its second reading, the bill regulating consumable hemp products and the hemp-derived cannabinoids in them. The motion prevailed 22 Yeas to 8 Nays. This is the procedural vote that brought the bill up; the Journal records the passage to engrossment that followed as "Same as previous roll call", and that vote is listed separately.
WeedVoter’s note — shown here, but not counted in the score: This site does not score procedural motions, such as suspending a rule, postponing, recommitting or reconsidering, because such a motion decides how a bill is handled rather than what it does, and its scoring rules read this record as one.
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Vote2025-08-19
Recorded Nay on final passage of SB 6 of the second called session, the successor hemp-cannabinoid bill, which carried 22 Yeas to 8 Nays.
No record compiled yet. Nothing on cannabis — no vote, bill, statement or endorsement — was found in any source we could read. 2 limits on that search are recorded with it.
What was checked for Marcus Cardenas, and the limits on it
Checked on 2026-09-18: the member-level rolls of every 2025 cannabis and hemp record vote in the official Texas House and Senate Journals — SB 3 and HB 46 in the regular session, SB 5 in the first called session and SB 6 in the second — including every Yea, Nay, present-not-voting, absent and statement-of-vote list, where this name does not appear because they hold no Texas legislative office; the author, joint-author, coauthor and sponsor tables of every cannabis, hemp, THC and Compassionate Use bill filed in the 87th, 88th and 89th Legislatures and the 2025 called sessions, at the Legislature's own bill-lookup service; and a press sweep including the Spectrum News report on the March 2026 Austin candidate forum on THC policy, which quotes six candidates by name and does not include them.
Also checked, and read in full on 2026-09-18: this candidate's Ballotpedia profile at ballotpedia.org/Marcus_Cardenas, including any Candidate Connection survey answers published there, which contains no mention of cannabis, marijuana, hemp, THC or CBD.
The candidate's own campaign site was read on 2026-09-20 at www.marcusfortexas.com — found by search and confirmed to name this candidate before it was attributed to them. 2 pages were read: the homepage, any JavaScript bundle it loads, and the pages linked from it. None contains cannabis, marijuana, marihuana, hemp, THC, CBD or Compassionate Use.
⚠️This covers the reachable site, not necessarily the whole site: a page that nothing links to cannot be found this way, and at least one Texas candidate keeps their platform on exactly such a page.
Their Ballotpedia profile was read in full on 2026-09-20 at ballotpedia.org/Marcus_Cardenas (12248 characters). It contains no occurrence of cannabis, marijuana, marihuana, hemp, THC, CBD, delta-8 or Compassionate Use. When we re-read their Ballotpedia profile on 2026-10-15, it recorded that they had not completed Ballotpedia’s 2026 Candidate Connection survey.
The site's own sitemap was read on 2026-09-21, which reaches pages nothing links to. Their campaign site publishes a sitemap listing 6 page(s), of which 5 were read — the sweep skips assets and archive listings rather than prose — and none of those pages contains cannabis, marijuana, marihuana, hemp, THC, CBD or Compassionate Use.
⚠️This card does not tell you whether this candidate held a seat in an earlier Legislature, but the question is now narrower. Read on 2026-10-15, from each chamber’s own journal: the roll of members-elect that the Texas House Journal prints, district by district, on the first day of every regular session from the 75th Legislature (1997) through the 89th (2025), and every senator the Texas Senate Journal names with a district on the first day of every regular session from the 76th (1999) through the 89th.
For the 89th those are journals.house.texas.gov/hjrnl/89r/pdf/89RDAY01FINAL.PDF and journals.senate.texas.gov/SJRNL/89R/HTML/89RSJ01-14-F.HTM and every journal read is listed on this site’s corrections page. No one by this candidate’s name appears in any of them. That is narrower than a negative answer. Those rolls name the members seated as each session opened, and in most years the Senate’s names the senators who were not up for election by surname alone, so a member who sat only in earlier sessions, who arrived at a special election and was never named in full on a later first day, or who served under another name would not be found this way.
If this candidate is one of those, there may be a cannabis voting record this site is missing.
Also checked on 2026-10-05: the Texas Hemp Business Council’s published 2026 candidate questionnaire roster at texashempbusinesscouncil.com/wp-json/thbc/v1/candidate-responses and texashempbusinesscouncil.com/candidate-responses. The council is a hemp industry trade association; it put twenty questions about hemp and THC policy to 221 named candidates for the Texas Legislature and statewide office, this candidate among them, and publishes the answers it receives.
On the date checked the council’s own roster recorded this candidate’s status as "awaiting" and carried no answers from them; 30 of the 221 had answered by that date and this candidate was not one of them. The council states that answers are added as they are completed, so this records only what the roster showed on 2026-10-05.
Re-read on 2026-10-16: his campaign site at www.marcusfortexas.com, which its sitemap shows to be a single page, HTTP 200 and robots-checked first. It contains no cannabis, marijuana, marihuana, hemp, THC, CBD, delta-8, cannabinoid, dispensary, decriminalisation, psilocybin or Compassionate Use.
Re-read on 2026-10-17: his campaign site marcusfortexas.com, which is drawn in the browser, read as its home page plus the nine script modules that carry its words, including its Issues, About, Hero and Quote modules, every file HTTP 200, each fetched only after its robots.txt allowed that exact path, and scanned on word boundaries in both its visible text and its page source for cannabis, cannabinoid, marijuana, marihuana, hemp, THC, CBD, delta-8, delta-9, Compassionate Use or decriminalisation.
None of those words appears, and the site carries no dated posts.
This card has been corrected. What an earlier version of it said, and what was wrong with it, is published in the corrections log.
No score: this candidate has no recorded vote or bill authorship on a cannabis measure. Silence is not a position, so nothing is inferred from it.
Campaign sites and voter guides checked for Marcus Cardenas
Pages read in full:
- onyourballot.vote411.org/m/race-detail.do?id=25682693 — sections on the page: Qualifications; Priorities; Education Public Safety Education; Water; Proof of Citizenship; Mail-in-Ballots — the question set the local League of Women Voters chapter wrote for this race, read in full by us on 2026-10-06. Not one of its questions asks about cannabis, hemp or drug policy. The candidate answered, in free text of their own, and no answer of theirs contains, on a word boundary, cannabis, marijuana, marihuana, hemp, hemp-derived, THC, thc-a, CBD, delta-8, delta-9, cannabinoid, dispensary, decriminalisation, psilocybin, Compassionate Use, consumable hemp, SB 3, Senate Bill 3, HB 1325 or HB 46.
- www.marcusfortexas.com their own site — sections on the page: Read 2026-09-20. No cannabis, marijuana, hemp, THC, CBD or Compassionate Use anywhere on the page.
- sanantonioreport.org/profile/marcus-cardenas-2026-candidate-for-texas-senate-district-19 — sections on the page: The San Antonio Report’s candidate profile, first published 2026-01-05 and last updated 2026-05-22, including its "Hear from the candidate" section of the candidate’s own answers, read in full by us on 2026-10-17 (HTTP 200). None of its questions asks about cannabis, hemp or THC, and no answer of theirs contains cannabis, marijuana, marihuana, hemp, THC, CBD, delta-8, cannabinoid, dispensary, decriminalisation or Compassionate Use.
All 2 candidates on this ballot are listed.