Maybe It Is, Maybe It Isn’t:
Regardless, Vote!

We’ve all heard the same phrase the last few election cycles — “This is the most important election of our lifetime” — so much so the statement has maybe lost some of its potency.

But, to our industry — our livelihood and rights as gun owners — this presidential election very well could be.

Here on the eve of Election Day, voters are tasked with choosing between two very different candidates — and polar opposites when it comes to gun rights and the Second Amendment.

While there are committed voters fiercely devoted to each side, those “in the middle” voters are the ones who will ultimately decide whether it is Former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris sitting in the White House on Jan. 20, 2025. And these voters are the ones our industry needs to reach and educate.

Get Out, And #GUNVOTE

To that end, one effective mobilization tool is NSSF’s #GUNVOTE initiative. This get-out-the-vote (GOTV) campaign has run in every federal election since 2000 and has gradually risen in prominence each cycle.

According to NSSF Senior VP and General Counsel Larry Keane, this targeted campaign is focused on battleground states for the president, as well as the U.S. Senate races.

“The purpose of this campaign is to reach out to gun owners in battleground states — which will determine the outcome of the election — and make sure they get registered to vote,” said Keane. “That’s the first step.”

The second aim of #GUNVOTE is to educate gun owners on where candidates stand on Second Amendment issues, while the third — as early voting has already started in some states — is to ensure they make sure their voices are heard by voting in person or by absentee ballot.

Taking Part

Keane identified three ways members of the industry can get involved in this effort.

1. Add the #GUNVOTE button on your website, giving customers a visual reminder of what’s at stake and to get involved. (“We encourage everyone in the industry to add the #GUNVOTE button on their websites. Even if you’re not in a battleground state, it helps spread the message,” Keane noted.) The button can be downloaded at nssf.org/gunvote.

2. Encourage employees, friends, family members and customers to vote and get educated on where the candidates stand not only on Second Amendment issues, but also on conservation.

3. In battleground states, NSSF is mailing storefront dealers #GUNVOTE stickers to pass out to customers and encourage others to spread the message. (Keane shared an amusing anecdote: “We love seeing #GUNVOTE stickers on the backs of pickup trucks around the country — and people send us pictures of them pretty regularly.”)

No Place For Complacency

According to Keane, NSSF committed unprecedented resources to the 2024 campaign. And why is that? Well, simply put: the outcome of this election will have significant ramifications for our industry.

If Vice President Kamala Harris is elected president, along with a Democrat sweep of Congress, it’s not a hyperbole to say this would be worst-case scenario for the longevity of our industry. Keane shared what a Harris presidency and Democrat-controlled Congress would look like.

“If Harris is elected president, what we see from ATF now will only get worse. Zero tolerance for gun dealers will become ‘subzero’ tolerance,” he said. “She’ll appoint anti-gun justices to the Supreme Court — opening up the opportunity to revisit Heller, Bruen and McDonald decisions. She’ll blow up the filibuster in the Senate; Congress will pass firearm bans, magazine bans and universal background checks. It’ll be ‘Katy bar the door’ — and too late for us to do anything about it.”

Keane pointed out that even if Democrats are unsuccessful in controlling Congress, Harris could act unilaterally — as shutting down firearms imports or exports doesn’t require an act of Congress.

Even with Harris’ recent reveal of being a gun owner during the Sept. 10 presidential debate — later adding, “We’re not taking anybody’s guns away” — her past history as California district attorney (e.g., microstamping) and President Biden’s “gun czar” (e.g., overseeing the Office of Gun Violence Prevention) mean the stakes couldn’t be higher, according to Keane.

“This truly is the most important election for the Second Amendment in our lifetime,” he said. “In the past, Harris called for mandatory confiscation. She now says she isn’t. So, was she lying then? Is she lying now? Or does she just lie now and then? People need to wake up, get registered and vote.”

At this point, this is all a big if. However, if we don’t do our part and vote we leave the future of our industry, sport and tradition — and constitutionally protected right — to chance.

I know I’m preaching to the choir here, but there’s too much at stake to stand by and do nothing. Regardless of whether you, your friends, family, employees or customers think this is all political rhetoric or the worst-case scenario will come to fruition — if you do nothing else on Election Day — don’t risk your rights, vote!

For more info on #GUNVOTE, visit gunvote.org.