2012 Top 50 Most Influential Marijuana Users

Thank you for checking out MPP's first annual "Top 50 Most Influential Marijuana Users" list. In order to come up with the final ranking, we asked our supporters to choose from nearly 200 influential people to help us narrow down the list to the final 50 you see here. We took the 37 individuals who received the most votes from our supporters and added them to MPP's top 13 automatic qualifiers (including people like Clarence Thomas). Then all 50 were ranked using the criteria below.

In order to have qualified for the list, each individual must (1) have tried marijuana at least once, (2) be alive, and (3) be living in the U.S. or be a U.S. citizen. We also asked our supporters to adhere to the definition for the "Power 50" list that's used by "Out" magazine, which employs the following criteria: "the power to influence cultural and social attitudes, political clout, individual wealth, and a person's media profile."

In sum, we're not concerned with an individual's popularity, or even whether he or she supports marijuana policy reform. Rather, the 2012 "Top 50 Most Influential Marijuana Users" list is meant to identify people who have used marijuana and achieved high levels of success or influence.

We hope you enjoy this list. We're excited to see how the most influential marijuana users change from year to year. (Prediction: Newt Gingrich will drop off the list.)

11. Libertarian Party Presidential Candidate Gary Johnson

“In that state somebody came by and said, 'Gary? Would marijuana help do you think?' And my response was immediately, 'Yes, I don't know why I didn't think of it, but I think that would help immensely.' And it did."

(Source: Huffington Post)

12. LeBron James

“James also revealed he and his teammates smoked marijuana one night after getting access to a hotel room in Akron.”

(Source: ESPN)

13. Mayor Michael Bloomberg

''You bet I did. And I enjoyed it.''

(Source: New York Times)

14. Sarah Palin

"I can't claim a Bill Clinton and say that I never inhaled.”

(Source: CBS News)

15. Woody Harrelson

“I do smoke… it’s about personal freedom… Seventy-two million people in this country have smoked pot…. These people should not be criminals.”

(Source: New York Daily News)

16. Al Gore

“Mr. Gore had said his cannabis consumption was 'infrequent and rare.'”

(Source: The Guardian)

17. Bill Maher

"Look, I have never made a secret of the fact that I have tried marijuana... About 50,000 times."

(Source: YouTube)

18. Willie Nelson

“Don't tell me about health when you're talking about legalizing marijuana because it's not dangerous health-wise. I'm the canary in the mine, and I'm still healthy.”

(Source: The Guardian)

19. Snoop Dogg (Snoop Lion)

“It makes me feel the way I need to feel.”

(Source: Esquire)

20. Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (CA)

"I did smoke a joint and I did inhale."