Texas congressional races key for both sides of debate on guns
BradyPAC and affiliates of Everytown for Gun Safety are spending more than $1 million in Texas as November nears, pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into digital ads that target two Houston-area races.
With less than a month until the election, Everytown launched two ads Friday targeting Texas' 7th Congressional District seat, held by Democrat Rep. Lizzie Fletcher.
In Texas' 22nd district, BradyPAC is backing Democrat Sri Preston Kulkarni with nearly $100,000 in direct contributions and campaign ads plus get-out-the-vote-efforts.
Both groups view Texas as a target state for gun safety legislation.
In 2019, as gun safety emerged as a top issue for Virginia voters after a mass shooting in Virginia Beach, Democrats took control of the state Legislature for the first time in two decades.
The same year, two mass shootings in Texas sparked a wave of calls for gun safety, drawing their attention southward.
BradyPAC, associated with gun safety advocacy group Brady, has signaled its intention to invest nearly $1 million in the state ahead of November, spending it to support campaigns, for voter engagement efforts and direct contributions to candidates including Kulkarni.
Brian Lemek, BradyPAC's executive director, said the group's investment in Kulkarni comes as Texas voters have expressed a “fullbodied optimism” on gun safety issues.
A University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll released in February found 79 percent support background checks for all gun purchases.
Kulkarni is running against Republican Troy Nehls, a former Fort Bend County sheriff who has positioned himself as a defender of the police and law and order.
Kulkarni is “going to be great on our issues … we know he cares about protecting Texans,” Lemek said. “We don't see (Nehls) taking gun violence legislation as seriously as Sri would.”
Everytown, meanwhile, is zeroing in on the race between Democratic incumbent Fletcher and Republican contender Wesley Hunt in Houston. Its digital ads attack Hunt's position on gun control, including his stand against background checks for all gun sales.
Jim Hilk, Hunt's campaign manager, called the ads misleading.
"While Wesley Hunt supports common-sense measures to keep weapons out of the hands of criminals, terrorists and the mentally unwell, Lizzie Fletcher will empower the radical left to restrict lawful gun owners and make it nearly impossible to purchase a firearm," Hilk said in a statement.
This is Everytown's third congressional spend this election cycle, senior political adviser Charlie Kelly said.
Everytown also previously has targeted Tony Gonzales, the Republican running to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Will Hurd in the 23rd Congressional District, which stretches from San Antonio to El Paso.