Arkansas medical cannabis sales slip as governor hopefuls come out on legalization
- Arkansas medical cannabis sales dropped 2.6% in the first half of 2026 to $140.3 million, despite a 7.7% increase in active patient cards to 119,074.
- The state had 36 licensed dispensaries in early 2026, slightly fewer than the previous year, with a legal cap of 40 dispensaries and no urgent plans to issue remaining licenses.
- State tax revenue from medical marijuana remained steady at $16.8 million in the first half of 2026, combining sales and privilege taxes.
- Both major party gubernatorial candidates oppose adult-use marijuana legalization, with Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders firmly against it and Democrat Fred Love personally opposing but deferring to voter decisions.
After a record year, Arkansas’ medical cannabis sales fell in the first half of 2026, even as the state’s patient count climbed.
Meanwhile, both major party gubernatorial candidates are opposing adult-use marijuana legalization.
Arkansas medical marijuana sales in 2026 reached $140.3 million through June, down 2.6% from $144 million in the same period in 2025, according to the state Department of Finance and Administration.
Arkansas medical marijuana sales totaled $291.1 million in 2025, up 5.5% over 2024 and the highest annual figure since sales began in 2019.
The Arkansas Department of Health reported 119,074 active patient cards in July, up 7.7% from 110,539 a year earlier.
The state boasted 36 licensed dispensaries in the first half of 2026, down from 37 a year earlier, according to Talk Business & Politics.
State law caps the number of MMJ dispensaries in the state at 40. Secretary of Finance Jim Hudson has said he’s in no hurry to award the final medical marijuana licenses.
A Texarkana location holds a license but remains closed.
Five dispensaries drove the largest shares of statewide sales from January through June, according to the Department of Finance:
State tax revenue held flat at $16.8 million, matching the first half of 2025. The figure combines the 6.5% state sales tax and the 4% privilege tax on cultivator-to-dispensary sales, the Department of Finance reported.
Despite MMJ’s success in Arkansas, neither major party candidate for governor supports recreational legalization, according to the Arkansas Advocate.
Sitting Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who skipped a June debate and is favorited to win a second term, confirmed her opposition in an emailed statement.
“Giving more access to drugs, particularly recreational access, does nothing to help or benefit Arkansans,” Sanders wrote, according to the Advocate.
Sanders vetoed a bill that would have allowed drive-through windows at dispensaries last year. She also signed a bill into law heavily restricting hemp-derived THC.
Rather than trying to find separation from Sanders, the Democratic Party nominee, state Sen. Fred Love said he personally opposes legalization but would defer to voters.
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“I just don’t think that it is something I can support,” Love told the Advocate.
He said he would back adult-use if Arkansans approved it at the ballot box.
Arkansas voters rejected a recreational measure in 2022. Efforts to expand MMJ have also failed.