Thailand’s Minister of Health, Cannabis Proponent and Candidate for Prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul made no attempt to hide his opinion on marijuana when he voted in Sunday’s election.

Charnvirakul, the Bhumjaithai Party’s prime ministerial candidate, appeared at his polling station wearing a dark shirt with light green marijuana leaves on it. Among other things, the party championed the promise to promote medical marijuana after successfully campaigning for it Decriminalize cannabis in June 2022, making it the first country in Southeast Asia to do so and the third largest in the world after Canada and Uruguay.

Since then, the Thai government – largely under the Charnvirakul Ministry of Health – has issued a series of ad hoc regulations to provide a framework for the sector.

Despite the often chaotic patchwork of regulations, sales and consumption of weed have skyrocketed in the past year, angering many of the country’s conservatives while delighting those working in the new industry and tourists who flock to Thailand anyway.

Prime Minister candidate Anutin Charnvirakul votes, courtesy of Thairath on Twitter

Charnvirakul promised that if elected, he would tighten regulations to curb recreational use of weed and limit its use to medicinal purposes only.

In addition to decriminalizing cannabis, Health Minister Charnvirakul steered the country through the pandemic. Some analysts believe he could influence post-election negotiations in a country riddled with corruption and an all-powerful military apparatus. Prayut Chan-o-cha, a retired army officer, has been prime minister since taking power in a military coup in 2014.

Meanwhile, English language content and information is considered chaotic due to government regulations High Thailand is anything but. The well-organized and authoritative website provides a map for locating the nearly 2,600 registered marijuana stores and dispensaries in the country and…