Midterms and gun control: NRA candidate ratings for tight races
The National Rifle Association (NRA), which spent less on this week's midterm elections than it had in previous midterm contests, came away with mixed results from the contests.
Spending by the Second Amendment rights group was down 68 percent this year when compared with the 2014 midterm cycle, according to The Washington Post, as a number of mass shootings have brought gun control more prominently into the national discourse.
Pro-gun control groups, however, spent the most this election cycle since 2010.
Forty-three percent of Americans say they have a gun in their home, according to a recent Gallup poll, but 61 percent of respondents thought laws governing the sale of firearms should be stricter.
Here are the NRA’s ratings for candidates in some of the congressional seats -- and the results:
Colorado: Coffman vs. Crow
Despite the NRA Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) endorsing Rep. Mike Coffman, the incumbent in the 6th district in Colorado who has an A rating from the NRA, he was beaten by Army veteran Jason Crow, who has an F rating from the NRA.
Crow openly discussed gun control, including banning assault weapons, expanding background checks and limiting firearm high-capacity magazines, which are capable of holding more than the standard 10 rounds.
Coffman is a Marine Corps combat veteran and has been a member of Congress since 2009. He has supported right-to-carry legislation and hunting rights, while he has opposed legislation to create a federal gun database and an ammunition ban.
Texas: Cruz vs. O’Rourke
Incumbent Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, first elected to office in 2012, won re-election against Rep. Beto O'Rourke. Cruz has an A+ rating from the NRA, which has donated tens of thousands to Cruz throughout the years to support him.
The NRA-PVF endorsed Cruz in September due to his record fighting liberal Democrats’ gun control efforts and his support for allowing gun owners to carry a concealed firearm across state lines.
O’Rourke, who has been serving in Congress since 2012 and has not yet been rated by the NRA, serves on the House Committees for Armed Services and Veterans Affairs. He supports background checks for all gun sales, banning high-capacity magazines, blocking non-Texans from carrying firearms across state lines and more research on gun violence.
Nevada: Heller vs. Rosen
Sen. Dean Heller, a Republican from Nevada who has an A rating and an endorsement from the NRA, lost the Senate seat he has held since 2011 to Democratic Rep. Jacky Rosen, who has a F rating.
Rosen introduced a bill last year to prohibit high-capacity magazines and supports universal background checks. She has said on social media that there are ways to both support the Second Amendment and reduce gun violence.
Heller voted no on banning high-capacity magazines, supported legislation for cross-state concealed carry and co-sponsored bills that would loosen restrictions on interstate gun purchases and allow veterans to register unlicensed guns acquired outside the U.S.
Indiana Braun vs. Donnelly
Republican candidate and businessman Mike Braun beat incumbent Sen. Joe Donnelly in Indiana. The NRA endorsed Braun and gave him an A rating. The group said Americans can “can count on him to defend our constitutional right to self-defense.”
Braun is an NRA member, an avid hunter and a “100 percent pro-Second Amendment” supporter, according to his website.
Donnelly has been serving in Indiana since 2012 and has a D rating from the NRA. The group said he cannot be “trusted to protect our Second Amendment freedoms,” after he voted for gun control measures.