On Election Eve, More Than One Million Americans Prepare to Vote for Gun Sense, Support Candidates and Policies to Prevent Gun Violence in 2014 Election and Beyond

SEATTLE, Nov. 3, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On the eve of Election Day, Everytown is mobilizing more than one million Americans to head to the polls tomorrow to vote for leaders and laws that will prevent gun violence – part of the organization's campaign to build a constituency of Americans who will vote on gun safety this November and in future elections.  Earlier this year, Everytown launched the Gun Sense Voter campaign with the goal of signing up one million Americans to vote for leaders and laws that will prevent gun violence.  Everytown also endorsed state and federal candidates and has spent more than $4 million to support Washington State's ballot measure to reduce crime and help save lives by closing the background check loophole.

"When it comes to gun violence prevention this Election Day, the Washington that matters most is Washington State – the only place in the country where voters will cast an up-or-down vote on life-saving background checks," said John Feinblatt, President of Everytown for Gun Safety.  "The 2014 election will mark an important evolution in gun politics.  In candidate races across the country, we are standing up for Gun Sense Champions – political leaders who voted the right way on gun safety – and we are working to build and protect "background check majorities" in states where we plan to be active in the next legislative session. 

"Moms have taken the fight to keep our children safe from gun violence to Congress, to statehouses, to corporations, and tomorrow, we're bringing this issue to the voting booth," said Shannon Watts, Founder of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.  "For months, we've been signing up Americans to vote on gun safety – and now the time has come for us to mobilize moms and Americans across this country to turn out and vote specifically on this issue in this election, and in all elections ahead. This is just the beginning – the gun lobby has had the field to themselves for decades and we're finally meeting them on their turf."

Watts led the Gun Sense Voter road show and joined local Moms chapters, gun violence survivors and other gun safety advocates to organize and volunteer for I-594 in Washington State and endorsed candidates in Oregon, Illinois, Minnesota, California, Maryland, Maine, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Colorado, Louisiana, North Carolina, Michigan and Nevada.  In a number of these states, Everytown is supporting legislative candidates as part of the organization's 2015 legislative strategy to build gun sense majorities that will pass gun safety measures.

Moms Demand Action chapters across the country will continue to mobilize voters today by leading and participating in GOTV activities including phone banks and canvasses to support I-594 and gun sense candidates.  In the past two weeks of GOTV, Moms volunteers have reached out to more than 27,500 voters, one at a time, person to person (on the phones or at the door), in more than 900 hours of volunteering. 

About Everytown for Gun Safety

Everytown for Gun Safety is the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country with more than 2.5 million supporters and more than 40,000 donors including moms, mayors, survivors, and everyday Americans who are fighting for public safety measures that respect the Second Amendment and help save lives.  At the core of Everytown are Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a grassroots movement of American mothers founded on the day after the Sandy Hook tragedy.  Learn more at www.everytown.org and follow us @Everytown 

About Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America

Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America is a grassroots movement of American mothers fighting for public safety measures that respect the Second Amendment and protect people from gun violence. Moms Demand Action campaigns for new and stronger solutions to lax gun laws and loopholes that jeopardize the safety of our children and families. Since its inception after the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Moms Demand Action has established a chapter in every state of the country and along with Mayors Against Illegal Guns is part of Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country with more than 2.5 million members and more than 40,000 donors. For more information or to get involved visit www.momsdemandaction.org. Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MomsDemandAction or on Twitter at @MomsDemand

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SOURCE Everytown for Gun Safety; Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America

Related Links

http://www.everytown.org