RELEASE: Giffords Endorses Slate of Gun Safety Champions for North Carolina General Assembly

October 11, 2018

The endorsement comes as part of the Giffords #VoteCourage Campaign to elect gun reform candidates nationwide

October 11, 2018 — Giffords, the gun safety organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and Captain Mark Kelly, announced its endorsement of 12 candidates for North Carolina General Assembly.

Governor Roy Cooper has been a gun safety champion in North Carolina, supporting proposals to establish an extreme risk protection order and require background checks on all gun sales. Unfortunately, a Republican supermajority in both chambers of the North Carolina legislature has blocked any of these measures from advancing, focusing instead on trying to pass extreme legislation backed by the gun lobby. Our endorsed leaders in North Carolina are ready to lead the fight for commonsense gun safety measures that will save lives.

Statement from former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, co-founder of Giffords:

“America experienced three of the deadliest mass shootings in modern history in just the past year. Over 38,000 people in our country were killed by a gun in 2016. North Carolina has suffered from this crisis: somebody is killed by a gun in North Carolina every 7 hours. Despite this devastating reality, the gun lobby continues to use its cash and influence to try and stop state legislatures from passing laws to make our schools, streets, and communities safer. “The candidates we are endorsing today acknowledge the toll of gun violence in their state, and they are working to stop it. Their leadership will be critical for our next victories in North Carolina to prevent future tragedies. Giffords is proud to endorse these leaders, who have the courage to stand up to the corporate gun lobby and who will never stop working to save lives.”

The newly-endorsed candidates include:

Jay Chaudhuri – Senate District 15
Wiley Nickel – Senate District 16
Floyd McKissick – Senate District 20
Allison Dahle – House District 11
Deb Butler – House District 18
Marcia Morey – House District 30
Ashton Clemmons – House District 57
Cecil Brockman – House District 60
Pricey Harrison – House District 61
Christy Clark – House District 98
Carla Cunningham – House District 106
Susan Fisher – House District 114

The Giffords #VoteCourage campaign aims to elect gun safety advocates to Congress and defeat politicians who have historically worked against gun reform, or done nothing at all to prevent gun violence. The political program targets incumbents in mostly suburban districts and uses a mixture of TV and digital advertising, on-the-ground organizing, and a voter registration push to create momentum for meaningful progress on gun safety.

Learn More about the Giffords 2018 political program here.

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