July 19, 2024

Report Demonstrates Critical Importance of #GUNVOTE® to Safeguard Hunting, Recreational Shooting Traditions

By Larry Keane

A new report from a grassroots voter registration group demonstrates the tremendous importance of registering to vote and the heightened impact hunters, recreational shooting sports enthusiasts and other law-abiding American gun owners could have on federal, state and local elections if they were only to register to vote and do so on Nov. 5, 2024.

That includes making sure the more than 22.3 million new first-time gun owners since 2020 are registered and make the effort to get to the ballot box on election day.

NSSF’s #GUNVOTE initiative was created to do just that and according to the newly released data from Vote4America, the outcome of the presidential election could be determined by Second Amendment supporters in just over 100 days.

What’s the Data Say?

The New York Post reported on new survey data from Vote4America that showed “Republicans don’t address political apathy among their gun-owning base in key swing states, they’ll have far fewer voters in their arsenal to score victories this November.”

According to the survey, Vote4America suggests there are some big gaps in critical swing states regarding hunters and shooting sports enthusiasts who are not registered to vote. In a breakdown by state, the data shows unregistered hunting and Second Amendment supporters total at least 515,277 in Pennsylvania. That number is closer to around 370,000 each in Michigan and North Carolina. In addition, Georgia, Wisconsin, Missouri and Virginia “all have more than half a million hunters and gun owners unregistered,” and in Arizona – another state that could swing to either President Joe Biden or presumptive Republican nominee former President Donald Trump – that number totals approximately 133,000.

In a podcast discussion with District of Conservation podcast host Gabriella Hoffman, Vote4America adviser Baker Leavitt said, “​​If we could convert 2% of all licensed hunters and get them to vote, GOP would win in a landslide.”

Hoffman agreed, reiterating the importance of the voting bloc.

“A lot of hunters and gun owners, they’re very animated in social media, they have a lot of opinions, but they don’t go out to vote,” she explained. “They talk a great deal, often about preserving your rights, doing this — hunting — but a lot of people don’t follow through with voting.”

An additional adviser to the group, Stephen Aaron, told Hoffman the stakes are high.

“Our goal is to make sure these people know that voting matters,” Aaron said. “This is an effort to help voters connect the issues impacting their daily life to decisions made by elected officials so people understand their vote really does matter and they engage.”

Breitbart News highlighted the data – and voter registration efforts – while referencing the importance the key voting bloc could have in critical swing states. Citing pro-hunting and pro-Second Amendment advocate Ted Nugent, Breitbart quoted the famous rock singer who stated, “The most powerful conservative voting army can be identified as licensed hunting families, and we have seen a re-engagement that glows positive,” Nugent said in 2020. “That conservative army, way too many of them, have been sitting it out. And that non-participation has rolled out the welcome mat” for elected officials who would trample on Constitutional rights.

Big Numbers. Outsized Difference.

The gap in the numbers of those Americans who actively participate in hunting, recreational shooting and target and range practice for self-defense purposes but aren’t registered to vote nor make it to the voting box is a gap but creates a tremendous opportunity for good.

NSSF data reveals more than 22.3 million Americans became first-time gun owners since the last presidential election in 2020, roughly the population of the state of Florida. Those gun owners looked around and didn’t like what they were seeing in their communities, their states and even at the federal level. So much so that they jumped off the fence and purchased a firearm. A significant portion was very likely made up of law-abiding Americans who previously supported some degree of gun control or likely voted for politicians that supported those policies and now are viewing crime, community safety and gun control policies through a different lens.

When those numbers are considered in the context of swing states in the Electoral College that could decide the presidency and be decided by only a few thousand votes, the disparity between who’s hunting and heading to the range to exercise their Constitutionally-protected rights and who’s voting becomes all the more critical. Second Amendment advocates and hunting enthusiasts need to know their commitment to registering to vote and doing so in November will have an outsized impact on a presidential election that will be extremely close.

Don’t Risk Your Rights

NSSF’s #GUNVOTE initiative was created to ensure law-abiding Americans casting ballots at the ballot box are informed of how to register to vote, when and where to cast their ballot and to make the most impactful decisions to safeguard their rights and freedoms.

#GUNVOTE conveniently lists out all U.S. states with links to their respective Secretary of State’s websites where more details about registering to vote, early voting protocols and the entire process can be found. For those who wait until election day to cast their ballot, #GUNVOTE will also tell voters of their polling place so that exercising the right to vote is as easy as possible.

Of course, self-defense and the very right to purchase and possess firearms is an inalienable right and enshrined within the U.S. Constitution. Those issues – ensuring law-abiding Americans can protect themselves, their families and their property – are what’s most often thought about.

But issues related to access to public lands and the ability to use those lands for hunting and recreational target shooting are important as well. Supporting those activities perpetuates the success and health of wildlife management and conservation efforts on hundreds of millions of acres of federal and state lands.

Second Amendment rights and the rights of hunters and recreational target shooters are on the ballot every election. It is not hyperbole to say this election will matter the most for the future of those rights. With such a large number of Americans out there who would clearly support the future of those hunting and shooting traditions by voting for candidates who would protect them, registering and mobilizing them will be key the coming weeks.

If you have a friend or loved one who loves hunting and recreational shooting sports, do your part and make sure they register to vote – and most importantly – and do so in November. Remind them to #GUNVOTE so they don’t risk their rights.