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Your no-nonsense guide to using your time, voice, & vote to support safer communities
What’s at stake this election cycle?
Our movement has made historic progress on gun safety. We’ve transformed it from a third rail issue to one that voters from all different political points of view prioritize and on which candidates run winning campaigns. Together, we passed the most significant federal gun safety legislation in a generation, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, as well as thousands of strong state- and local-level gun safety laws.
But to protect the progress we’ve made and continue pushing forward, we have to keep electing leaders who will address this crisis with the urgency it deserves. That includes upholding our existing gun safety laws and passing new ones that will help make our communities safer.
This election is too important for us to sit on the sidelines: Our safety, democracy, and freedoms are all on the ballot. We shouldn’t have to live in constant fear of gun violence in our homes, schools, houses of worship, parks, and supermarkets. But right now, unfortunately, that’s the America we live in. Every day in this country, more than 125 people are killed with guns, more than 200 people are shot and wounded, and countless others are traumatized by witnessing gun violence. Guns are now the leading cause of death for children, teens, and young adults.
This crisis affects ALL of us, whether we’re Republicans, Democrats, or Independents; gun owners or non-gun owners; or whether we live in big cities, small towns, or rural communities. We know we need urgent action to protect our families, but we continue to see politicians refuse to act. Even worse, some choose to cater to extremists and side with the gun industry over the folks in their own districts.
This heartache and inaction ends with US. If we all get involved in these elections, the reality of America can—and will—be different. The vast majority of Americans want to see meaningful change to make our communities safer. Background checks on all gun sales, for example, are supported by a near-universal 93% of American voters, including 89% of Republicans. It’s clear that gun violence prevention is not a red or blue issue, it’s a life-or-death issue. And when all of us come together, we have the power to elect leaders from every party who will work to end gun violence.
Who is a Gun Sense Voter?
A Gun Sense Voter is someone who is committed to prioritizing gun safety as a top issue when they consider who to vote for, no matter their party affiliation. But our commitment to gun sense isn’t limited to Election Day.
Even before we enter the voting booth, there are easy actions we can all take to raise awareness about gun violence prevention. We can challenge candidates to make real plans to protect our communities, support Gun Sense Candidates running for office at every level of government—and hold elected officials accountable for the promises they make after Election Day. That’s what we call being an active Gun Sense Voter, and that’s where this guide comes in.
Are you a Gun Sense Voter? Tell us why!
How can I get involved?
Making a difference starts with showing up! Ensure you’re ready—make a plan to vote here.
And then check your voter registration status to ensure your registration is up to date with the address where you currently live. Not registered to vote yet? You can register here.
We know that while gun violence impacts all of us, it shows up in our communities in different ways. The news often focuses on mass shootings, but we know that firearm homicides, suicides, domestic violence, and unintentional shootings are impacting our communities every day, even when they don’t make headlines.
Our responsibility as Gun Sense Voters is to learn about what gun violence looks like in our own communities. Once we know that, we can educate ourselves about the proven solutions that work to reduce it.
It will take ALL of us to elect Gun Sense Candidates this fall. And because every vote can make a difference, encouraging the people in our lives to vote with gun sense in mind makes a big impact.
Ways you can help:
Share your why: Start the conversation by sharing why gun violence prevention is a top issue for you this election. Then ask your friend, family member, or neighbor what they would like to see elected leaders do to keep your community safe from gun violence.
Focus on finding common ground: We don’t have to agree on every issue to work together to keep our communities safe from gun violence. Allow others to ask questions and share their perspective with you as well.
Help them make a plan to vote: Getting folks to make a plan on how they will get to the polls or cast their mail-in ballot is a tried-and-true way to increase the likelihood someone will vote. Help your friend, family member, or neighbor make a concrete plan that helps them visualize the steps they’ll go through on Election Day. Some sample questions to ask:
Do you know where your polling place is? How will you get there?
Do you need help with transportation?
Do you know when to mail your ballot if you’re voting by mail?
Do you know what ID you’ll need to bring to the polls (if applicable in your state)?
You can also share the voter planning tools on Gun Sense Voter.
Engaging with candidates and their campaigns directly is a critical way to ensure gun safety stays top of mind for our leaders and their teams. This is important no matter their current stance on gun violence prevention or the level of government at which they serve.
Whether you’re speaking with a gun sense champion running for president or a school board candidate who has refused to take action in the past, talking about gun violence prevention ensures our leaders know this is an issue that voters care about. That knowledge forces them to make their policies and commitments clear and lets them know we’re expecting them to act if they are elected.
Campaign events, town halls, fundraising events, and even one-on-one conversations with folks in their communities are all ways candidates engage with voters—and these are all places where you can talk to them about gun violence prevention.
Examples of questions you can ask to start the conversation:
We know that gun safety is consistently a top issue with voters, and it’s certainly a top issue for me. As we approach the November elections, what specific policies do you support to reduce gun violence in our community?
Guns are the leading cause of death for children, teens, and young adults in our country and in our state. What policies do you support to protect young people from gun violence?
We know that access to a gun makes it five times more likely that a woman will be killed in a domestic violence situation. What policies do you support to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and protect women and children?
There is no evidence that arming teachers helps to stop active shooters—and on the contrary, an armed teacher is more likely to unintentionally shoot a student bystander or be shot by responding law enforcement themselves. Do you support allowing teachers and school staff to bring guns into K-12 schools?
Research shows that access to a gun triples a person’s risk of dying by gun suicide, and more than half of suicides in America involve a gun. Data also shows that educating people about these risks saves lives. What policies do you support to help reduce the role firearms play in America’s suicide epidemic?
The gun lobby has been able to write special protections for itself into law for decades. A gun industry that plays by its own rules has been able to fuel a gun violence crisis with no regard for the harm it causes. Do you support giving gun violence survivors access to justice by allowing them to take bad industry actors to court?
Don’t forget these candidates and elected officials are working to represent YOU. So while it’s important to educate yourself about gun violence prevention policies, it’s even more important that candidates and elected leaders know voters understand and care about this issue as a whole. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good! Even if you feel like you don’t know every question to ask or what answers to expect, showing up and talking about gun violence prevention is the most important step!
Once you’ve identified the races and candidates you care most about, there are plenty of ways you can work to support them and help them enact gun safety policies.
Join Students Demand Action volunteers taking action using their Virtual Election HQ.
Make an impact without even leaving home by joining a Gun Sense Action Network virtual call team or joining us for a virtual phone bank event. With a phone, a computer, and two hours of your time, you can make a difference by helping voters across the country learn about their Gun Sense Candidates and plan their votes!
Stay up to date on the latest news, ways to get involved, and plans for national days of action by downloading the Demand Action App.
And if you’ve never done anything like this before, don’t worry! Gun Sense Voters come from all walks of life and all levels of experience. We’re super friendly and will hold a training session at the beginning of every meeting for all newcomers! Feel free to bring a friend, too!
Election work doesn’t end on Election Day. After November 5, we’ll continue planning for future races. And we’ll keep holding elected officials accountable for tackling this crisis by supporting those who act and reminding those who don’t who they really work for: US.
To get or stay connected to the work of your local Students Demand Action group, text STUDENTS to 644-33.
To get or stay connected to your local Moms Demand Action group, text READY to 644-33.
And to get or keep working with the Gun Sense Action Network to support future races and upcoming gun safety legislation, sign up here.
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Thank you for all of your efforts to elect gun sense champions and make your communities safer. Together, we WILL end gun violence.