Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Banning Guns at the Ballot Box

Friday, June 8, 2018

Banning Guns at the Ballot Box

When gun control activists put firearm transfer bans on the ballot under the guise of “universal background checks”in Washington, Nevada, and Maine, they argued that this was just "common sense", and they weren't trying to ban guns. While we knew this was false at the time, the current push for anti-gun ballot initiatives in several states is proving that point.

In Oregon, citizens are allowed to petition to put on the ballot an initiative that would let voters directly establish state law. To that end, gun-ban proponents in the Beaver State have filed Initiative Petition 43, which seeks to establish a ban on some of the most commonly-owned rifles, handguns, shotguns, and ammunition magazines. The firearms and magazines being targeted are those that most gun owners consider to be the best option for personal protection. 

Likely hoping to exploit the raw, emotional response to the horrific tragedy that occurred in Parkland, Florida, this initiative seeks to ban all semi-automatic rifles that fall under its broad definition of “assault weapon.” It goes even further than the failed federal “assault weapon”ban of 1994, which banned firearms based on having two randomly selected cosmetic features. Initiative Petition 43 would dictate that one cosmetic feature, such as a folding or telescoping stock, warrants a rifle or shotgun being banned. 

The initiative would also reinstate the failed federal restriction on detachable magazines with a capacity of more than 10 rounds. Those in possession of these magazines, or newly banned “assault weapons,” would have to surrender them, remove them from the state, transfer them to a licensed dealer, destroy them, or register them within 120 days of passage of the initiative.

While the provisions regarding rifles, shotguns, and magazines are bad enough, the measure’s treatment of handguns is egregious and in direct violation of the Supreme Court’s decisions in District of Columbia v. Heller and McDonald v. City of Chicago. The initiative would ban virtually any semi-automatic handguns commonly used for personal protection. 

The initiative's language would ban any “semiautomatic pistol . . . that has the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds of ammunition.” Because nearly all of the most commonly available pistols used for self-defense have magazines available with capacities over 10 rounds, the initiative would amount to a near absolute ban on semi-automatic pistols. Twice the Supreme Court has held this type of broad prohibition on handguns unconstitutional, yet gun control proponents continue to seek such laws in direct contravention of our constitutional rights.

Unfortunately, Oregon is not the only place where gun-ban advocates are trying to use state initiative procedures to ban guns.

In Florida, anti-gun members of the Constitution Revision Commission attempted to promote adding numerous gun restrictions to the state Constitution, including their version of an “Assault Weapons” ban, as well as most semi-automatic rifles. Fortunately, this effort failed, the proponents are already talking about pushing a ballot initiative in 2020.

Gun control proponents will likely claim that their public polling shows overwhelming support for these measures, but as we saw in Washington, Nevada, and Maine, when voters are informed of the actual implications of these initiatives their support is not so “overwhelming.” Even though proponents of the initiatives significantly outspent NRA thanks to near limitless funding from Michael Bloomberg-backed Everytown for Gun Safety, the initiatives in Washington and Nevada passed by narrower margins than expected and voters in Maine rejected Everytown’s initiative.

Many states have voter-driven initiative processes, so we should not be surprised if similar efforts appear across the country. Thanks to millions in funding from Bloomberg and other wealthy gun-control supporters, Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action will keep pushing attacks on the Second Amendment by trying to confuse voters at the ballot box. Of course, the mainstream media will continue to support these efforts through misleading news and inflammatory, inaccurate reporting.

While we will never be able to match the tens of millions that Everytown and others spend to put gun-control proposals on the ballot, we have something that gun-control proponents can only dream of: the five million members of the NRA and 120 million American gun owners. Together, we can defeat them by voting “no” at the ballot box.

 

TRENDING NOW
Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Thursday, September 11, 2025

Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Yesterday, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion in Siegel v. Platkin, striking some of the carry restrictions New Jersey enacted in response to the NRA’s landmark Supreme Court victory, New York State Rifle & ...

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

Close observers of the gun debate often see references to due process.

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

Pure gun control. As in disarmament and banning of firearms. It’s rare that anti-gunners get straight to the exact point that we have been warning of for decades. 

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) may have thought he had scored against President Donald Trump in a recent war of words over rampant crime and the deployment of federal law enforcement agents to Democratic-led cities

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Monday, September 8, 2025

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Today, the National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari in a case challenging Washington State’s ban on firearm magazines that hold more than 10 rounds.

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Wednesday, September 3, 2025

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Earlier this month, Governor JB Pritzker signed Senate Bill 8 into law. This legislation imposes new mandatory firearm storage requirements on law-abiding gun owners.  

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Tuesday, August 26, 2025

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Today, the House rescheduled the veto override vote on Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to Monday, September 22. 

Minnesota: Senate Gun Violence Prevention Working Group Meeting on Monday

Friday, September 12, 2025

Minnesota: Senate Gun Violence Prevention Working Group Meeting on Monday

On Monday, September 15th, the Minnesota Senate will hold a special working group on "gun violence prevention."

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

News  

Monday, March 17, 2025

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

In a turnabout worthy of Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Washington Post (WAPO) published an editorial last Tuesday criticizing the gun control movement for ignoring the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) and pursuing its agenda in ...

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Friday, August 15, 2025

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Today, a Petition for Certiorari was filed asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Duncan v. Bonta, a case—backed by the National Rifle Association and California Rifle & Pistol Association—challenging California’s prohibition on magazines capable of holding ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.