By: José Niño
In Michigan, angry voters are targeting five Democratic members of the State House for their votes on gun control legislation in 2023.
Constituents from the elected officials’ districts filed five petitions in early July with the Department of State. State Reps. Betsy Coffia and Sharon MacDonell are being targeted in the recall effort for their votes on House Bill 4145.
The Extreme Risk Protection Order Act grants family members and other individuals the power to ask a court to confiscate an individual’s firearms if they present a threat to themselves or others. Red flag gun confiscation orders are one of the trendiest forms of gun control that civilian disarmament proponents have been pushing in recent years.
The recall effort is also going after Democratic Reps. Jaime Churches, Jennifer Conlin, and Reggie Miller for their votes in favor of HB 4474. The bill highlighted that a person is guilty of committing a hate crime if they intimidate an individual based on their race, religion, or gender identity.
Republican State Rep. Cam Cavitt is also facing a recall vote for voting for the House’s first roll call vote of the legislative session, which saw Joe Tate elected as House speaker.
Dudley Brown, the president of the National Association for Gun Rights, commented on the recall effort being directed against these Democrats:
“Pro-gun voters are sick and tired of being ignored by their lawmakers who seem to care more about earning political brownie points from the liberal media, and Gun Control Inc. I’m happy to see this anti-gun betrayal may be costing a few Michigan politicians their seats.”
Despite going for President Donald Trump in 2016, Michigan has taken somewhat of a leftward turn in the last few years. When it comes to gun policy, Michigan leaves a lot to be desired for gun owners. According to Guns & Ammo magazine’s 2022 rankings for best states for gun owners, Michigan found itself in in 25th place.
That said, with Democrat Gretchen Whitmer in charge of the governor’s mansion and Democrats in control of both chambers of the state legislature — House (56-54) and Senate (20-18), the state could continue drifting in an anti-gun direction. What’s more, there are likely lukewarm Republicans who join these Democrats in pulling the lever for gun control.
In light of this development, Michigan gun owners must continue exercising vigilance and hold their elected officials accountable. If pro-gun activists become complacent, the state will rapidly fall into the hands of Gun Control Inc. like many other blue states nationwide.
José Niño is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. Contact him via Facebook, Twitter, or email him at [email protected]. Get his e-book, The 10 Myths of Gun Control, here.