LAS VEGAS – Medical marijuana activist Michael McAuliffe has received the endorsement of Nevada’s progressive leader, Tick Segerblom, in the open seat Democratic primary for AD20.
“Assembly District 20 is a guaranteed Democratic win. Our rank and file primary voters should elect the most progressive candidate we can to Carson City and that’s Mike McAuliffe,” said Segerblom. “Las Vegas has a harsh climate where it takes deep roots to survive. As a medical marijuana activist, Mike has spent most of his two-plus decades here helping our friends and neighbors survive cold legislative seasons and raids by over-zealous authorities. Mike has provided a leadership voice for his community over many years. He will be a strong advocate for Bernie Sanders’ brand of policies in Nevada, and he hasn’t just blown in with the wind.”
First-time candidate McAuliffe’s platform issues include healthcare & criminal justice reform, and solar homesteading to encourage wider adoption of distributed solar power generation. The two-time Bernie delegate also seeks to expand Nevada’s marijuana reforms if elected including expungement of pot convictions and speakeasy lounges. He also has been endorsed by the Veterans in Politics 503c Nevada chapter and Assemblyman Richard Carrillo, another longtime supporter of progressive causes.
“I am honored to have the support of Commissioner Tick Segerblom for my campaign,” said McAuliffe. “Tick’s career has been a shining example of personal commitment to public service for the betterment of our community. A crisis that can affect any of us does in fact affect all of us, and we are better prepared economically right now because of Tick’s progressive leadership in the legislature. I cannot thank him enough for his support.”
McAuliffe, a medical marijuana patient rights activist from the earliest days of the Nevada program first crossed paths with Nevada’s undisputed progressive leader in 2009. McAuliffe was executive director of Nevada NORML at the time. The following June, McAuliffe wrote, introduced and successfully fought on the floor for an amendment that was the nation’s first pro-cannabis industry plank at the Nevada Democratic state convention. He has been a director or founding officer of nearly half a dozen non-profits including the National Cannabis Industry Association and Nevada’s own Wellness Education Cannabis Advocates of Nevada – WECAN. His campaign website, www.mike4-20.com takes advantage of the serendipity of the movement he led and the district he seeks to represent.
