Referendum Results a Mixed Bag for Gun Owners

There were four statewide referendums that were on our radar here at Bearing Arms, as well as one local ballot question in a New Mexico county that asked voters to approve a small tax that could have big implications for their Second Amendment rights. 

Overall, it was a mixed bag for gun owners. Let's start with the good news.

Arkansas voters overwhelmingly approved a measure to amend the state constitution and offer additional protections to the right to keep and bear arms. Almost 71 percent of voters said "yes" to the proposal, which specifies that the right to keep and bear arms also encompasses  the possession and use of ammunition, firearm accessories, and firearm components. The language also explicitly states that the right applies to hunting, recreation, and all other lawful purposes. 

Voters in Lea County, New Mexico also approved the 0.001 percent tax on gross receipts in unincorporated parts of the county, which is expected to generate almost $1,000,000 each year that will be designated to fund legal defenses against government overreach, including challenges to new gun control laws adopted by the state legislature. 6,665 Lea County residents voted in favor of the tax, while 5,501 voted against. That's a nearly 10-point margin of victory, which is a pretty substantial win given that we're talking about a self-imposed tax increase. 

Voters in Idaho also selected the Winchester Model 1873 as the state's official firearm, and now it will be up to the state legislature to make it truly official. The rifle had received a little more than 30 percent of the vote as of early Wednesday morning, with the Winchester Model 1894 in second place with about 25 percent of the vote.

House Majority Leader Jason Monks, R-Meridian, selected the candidates after researching and consulting with other lawmakers on which guns have historical significance to Idaho or the U.S., he told the Idaho Statesman in October. “I like the term ‘iconic,’” Monks said. “I thought a little bit more historical than necessarily what’s popular today.” The bill that brought forward the ballot question aimed to honor the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence by acknowledging the role of firearms in both Idaho’s and America’s histories.

Unfortunately, Second Amendment supporters were unable to repeal the latest iteration of Massachusetts' gun laws at the voting booth. The "yes" vote on Question 9, which keeps Chapter 135 in place, garnered about 67 percent of the vote. Interestingly, there were multiple jurisdictions that voted in favor of repeal, including clusters of towns in western and central Massachusetts, as well as another cluster near Cape Cod. More than 80 percent of voters in Boston and its suburbs voted to keep the laws in place, though, which ended up sinking the ballot initiative. 

Finally, a measure to establish a right to hunt and fish in Colorado was defeated, and it doesn't look like the final tally will be particularly close. 

Amendment 83 would designate hunting and fishing as the preferred way to manage wildlife populations.

The proposal garnered 43%, compared with 56% opposed, according to the early, unofficial results.

“Coloradans banned steel traps and baiting three decades ago, and they didn’t take kindly to this aggressive and overreaching effort to put those policies at risk and to hijack decision-making on wildlife policy in the years and decades ahead,” Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action, said in a press statement. “Voters saw through this scheme, despite the trophy hunters outspending the No on 83 coalition more than 3 to 1.”

I was concerned that this might happen. Establishing a right to hunt and fish would be a no-brainer in most Mountain West states, but Colorado has drifted so far to the left that I suspected this issue would struggle to get majority support. The sad thing is that people who have no desire to hunt or fish (and who probably have no idea how successful the North American model of game management has been) are the ones who determined the outcome of this referendum. 

Even without national headwinds, the politics of Massachusetts and Colorado would have made passage difficult, but I suspect that the results of Question 9 and Amendment 83 would have been closer had this not been a blue wave election. If there's a silver lining of any kind, it's that gun owners who are looking to make a move to a more Second Amendment-friendly state after last night's results know they've got a safe haven in Arkansas. 

Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their extreme gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

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