Arizona Senate Election 2016: Where the Candidates Stand on Guns

The 2016 election is only a few days away and while everyone knows the presidential candidates’ stances on guns, for many the state elections, which can cause affect laws in each individual state just as much, if not more than the presidency. We here at USA Firearm Training believe that a well-informed populace is a strong one, so we are going to be sharing with you the Senate in Arizona and the stances of the candidates on guns, to give each of you a better idea where they stand.

THE RACE

Arizona has pitted against each other this year, Senior Republican Senator John McCain against Democratic Challenger Ann Kirkpatrick, three-time Congresswoman from Arizona’s 1st Congressional District.

Recent polls have shown an average of a 10 point lead for incumbent Senator John McCain, although in recent weeks Congresswoman Kirkpatrick has had a rise in poll numbers.

So to take a look more in-depthly at the candidates and their stances on guns and gun control, let’s take a look at the candidates historical statements and actions, individually.

JOHN McCAIN

John McCain believes that the right of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms is a fundamental, individual Constitutional right. We have a responsibility to ensure that criminals who violate the law are prosecuted to the fullest, rather than restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens. Gun control is a proven failure in fighting crime. Law abiding citizens should not be asked to give up their rights because of criminals–criminals who ignore gun control laws anyway.

McCain said he was open to voting for an assault weapon ban, depending on the details. McCain spoke generally of the need for some tighter gun controls on hardened criminals and children. In Congress, he pressured his colleagues to require background checks for buyers at guns shows, and he supported a requirement that trigger locks be sold with handguns. But the Senator opposed the two major gun-control measures of recent years, the 1994 ban on several types of assault weapons and the Brady Bill, which required a 5-day waiting period for handgun purchases.

McCain opposes bans on the importation of certain types of ammunition magazines and has voted against such limitations and believes that banning ammunition is just another way to undermine Second Amendment rights. He voted against an amendment that would have banned many of the most commonly used hunting cartridges on the spurious grounds that they were “armor-piercing.”

ANN KIRKPATRICK

Congresswoman Kirkpatrick supports the Second Amendment. As a member of the state legislature, she defied the leadership of her own party to stand up for the rights of Arizona’s families to keep and bear arms. Kirkpatrick strongly supported legislation bringing back responsible gun education to our public schools and voted to reduce the penalty for law-abiding citizens carrying a concealed weapon without a state permit.

Opposed “Further restrictions on the right to keep and bear arms”. In a publication, “The Christian Coalition Voter Guide” which publishes a number of special voter educational materials providing voters with critical information about where candidates stand on important faith and family issues, Kirkpatrick stated bluntly that she opposes restrictions on the 2nd amendment.

Kirkpatrick signed H.R.197 & S.845 which established a national standard for the carrying of concealed firearms by non-state residents. It authorizes a person who has a valid permit to carry a concealed firearm in one state and who is not prohibited from carrying a firearm under federal law to carry a concealed firearm in another state:

• Notwithstanding any law of any State, a person who is not prohibited by Federal law from possessing a firearm and is carrying a valid license to carry a concealed firearm may carry in another State a concealed firearm.
• If such other State issues licenses to carry concealed firearms, the person may carry a concealed firearm in the State under the same restrictions which apply in that State.
• If such other State does not issue licenses to carry concealed firearms, the person may not carry a concealed firearm in a police station, in a courthouse, at a meeting of a governing body, in a school, at an athletic event, in an establishment licensed to dispense alcoholic beverages, or inside an airport, except to the extent expressly permitted by State law.

We hope that this information is fruitful and will help you figure out where your vote may want to go in your upcoming Senatorial election.