Florida Gun Rights (FLGR), the state affiliate of the National Association for Gun Rights, has announced its endorsement of House Bill 31, introduced by State Representative Joel Rudman. The proposed legislation seeks to legalize open carry in Florida and repeal the state’s “Red Flag” gun confiscation law.
“Legalizing open carry and repealing the ‘Red Flag’ law are essential steps toward fully restoring Second Amendment rights in Florida,” said Matt Mammoser, FLGR’s Director of Legislation. He questioned whether anti-gun politicians, including Senate President Ben Albritton, would continue to oppose gun owners or stand up for constitutional rights.
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“The real question is, will anti-gun politicians like Senate President Ben Albritton ignore gun owners across the state and keep Florida on the list of states banning open carry like Illinois, Connecticut, and even California or will they finally defend the Second Amendment,” Mammoser asked.
Passing HB 31 may echo the lengthy battle for Constitutional Carry legislation, which faced significant resistance before its eventual approval in 2023. Governor Ron DeSantis eagerly signed that bill after years of advocacy by gun rights supporters.
“We worked with thousands of gun rights supporters throughout the state to overcome the resistance of weak-kneed Republicans in order to pass Constitutional Carry and we’ll continue to do the same with HB 31, even against Albritton’s attempt to sell out the caucus to the Gun Control Lobby,” explained Dustin Curtis, Director of State Affairs for the National Association for Gun Rights.
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Senate President Ben Albritton has publicly opposed open carry legislation, expressing his reluctance to support such measures.
On the Bob Rose Show, Governor DeSantis alluded to Open Carry passing by stating, “You may get that in this upcoming legislative session. Stay tuned on that.”
Dustin Curtis noted NAGR and FLGR’s efforts to make Governor DeSantis’ statement a reality. “I’ve spoken to many gun owners frustrated with so-called Republicans like Albritton who fail to advance their Second Amendment Rights by opposing legislation like HB 31. Their inaction isn’t going unnoticed and we won’t stop mobilizing grassroots Patriots in support of pro-gun legislation,” Curtis concluded.
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