By: José Niño
As election day quickly approaches, Pennsylvania is shaping up to be one of the most crucial battleground states for the 2020 cycle.
Viewed as a “tipping point” state in the current presidential election, both Republicans and Democrats are pouring millions into the state. One group that’s flexing its muscles in the Keystone State is Everytown for Gun Safety. The civilian disarmament organization, which counts on heavy financial contributions from the likes of oligarch Michael Bloomberg, wants to punish the Republican-controlled State House and Senate for its perceived inaction on gun control legislation.
Everytown’s political arm launched a $1.4 million digital advertising and direct mail campaign directed at several House and Senate seats to try to turn Pennsylvania’s General Assembly into a “gun sense majority.” There may, however, be some obstacles for the gun control crowd this go-around. According to a recent report by Breitbart News, swing states like Pennsylvania have witnessed a considerable surge in firearms sales during the last six months. The unrest following the Wuhan virus pandemic has prompted millions of Americans to make proactive decisions for their self-defense needs. In addition, Pennsylvania has the third highest number of concealed carry permit holders (1.33 million) in the nation. Any type of radical gun grab effort by the Left could see a concerted pushback from gun owners.
“For years now, Republican leaders in Pennsylvania’s Legislature have chosen to put gun lobby interests ahead of public safety, but now the choice lies with the people,” John Feinblatt, the president of Everytown for Gun Safety, declared in a statement. “Everytown is going all out to help voters hold gun lobby lawmakers accountable for their refusal to pass common sense laws to keep our families safe.”
The goal for Democrats is to take over both the House and Senate, which are under Republican control (109-93) and (28-21) respectively.
“We’re making sure every Pennsylvanian knows where candidates stand on gun safety because lives are on the line,” Katie Leslie, an activist with the Pennsylvania chapter of Moms Demand Action, a group affiliated with Everytown, said in a statement. “We’ve seen the dangerous bills the legislature has pushed instead of strengthening our gun laws, and we’ve had enough. We’re ready to elect a gun sense majority in Pennsylvania.”
Pennsylvania will be one of the states to watch during the 2020 election cycle. If Pennsylvania Republicans want to maintain their hold of the General Assembly, an easy way to do is by unapologetically campaigning in favor of pro-Second Amendment policies. Contrary to what experts say, the Second Amendment is still a winner and is probably one of the safest bets for Republican incumbents to keep their seats. Similarly, Republican challengers can likely come out victorious by campaigning hard on pro-gun issues. If Republicans in Pennsylvania (and the rest of the country for that matter) want to win big in 2020, they should run on strong, pro-Second Amendment platforms and not look back.
José Niño is an American freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. Sign up for his mailing list here. Contact him via Facebook, Twitter, or email him at [email protected]. Get his e-book, The 10 Myths of Gun Control, here.