A Roundup Of Endorsements For The NRA Board Of Directors

If you are a NRA Life Member or an Annual Member of five consecutive years (or more), you are eligible to vote in the elections for NRA Board of Directors. The Board is comprised of 76 members with 25 being elected each year and the 76th being elected at the Annual Meeting.

This year there are 31 candidates running for 25 positions. Of these 31, 29 were nominated by the Nominating Committee. The remaining two candidates were nominated by a petition of the membership which requires at least 250 signatures. These two candidates are Maria Heil of New Freedom, PA and Steven Schreiner of Englewood, CO.

Here is a roundup of endorsements that I've been able to find.

From Sebastian and Bitter at Shall Not Be Questioned: Scott Bach, Joseph DeBergalis, Jeffrey Crane, David Coy, and Joel Friedman. In their endorsements, they explain their rationale for supporting each of these five candidates which is too long to excerpt here. Nonetheless, I think they give solid reasons for each candidate they endorse.

From Jeff Knox of the Firearms Coalition: Maria Heil.

This year I am only endorsing one candidate, Maria Heil, and asking voting members of NRA to cast ballots with only Mrs. Heil’s name marked. While I do not know Mrs. Heil personally, she comes highly recommended by friends whose opinions I deeply respect. I think Mrs. Heil would be a diligent worker for our rights as gun owners – and as NRA members – within the Board of Directors. I believe she would bring some much-needed new energy to the board.

From Col. Robert Brown of Soldier of Fortune magazine: Steve Schreiner, Scott Bach, Bob Viden, Joe DeBergalis, Wayne Anthony Ross, and Manny Fernandez. Col. Brown gives special emphasis to Steve Schreiner in his endorsements. He also specifically does not recommend Grover Norquist.

From Tom King on behalf of the NY State Rifle and Pistol Association: Joseph DeBergalis

From the Texas Firearms Coalition:  David Coy and Don Saba. They endorse Coy due to his financial expertise and its importance to the Board and they endorse Saba for his work in debunking junk science being propagated by anti-gun and anti-hunting organizations.

From the New Jersey Second Amendment Society: Scott Bach and Robert Viden.

I have known Scott Back since I founded the NJ2AS and he has been continually supportive of our efforts. I wholeheartedly endorse Scott and Bob for re-election to the Board. I hope that you will join with me in voting for our New Jersey representation on the NRA.

From the Fifty Caliber Institute: John C. Sigler, Ronnie Barrett, Joe DeBergalis, Robert Viden, David Coy, Steven Schreiner, and William Bachenberg. All of these men are members of the Fifty Caliber Shooters Association and Sigler is President of the Fifty Caliber Institute. Of course, in .50 caliber circles, Ronnie Barrett needs no introduction.

From 3Gun Nation: Joe DeBergalis. They note he has been the Match Chairman of a number of 3Gun events including most recently the Rumble on the Range in Las Vegas which was held concurrently with the SHOT Show.

Two candidates for the Board - Scott Bach and David Coy - have made their own YouTube promo videos. You can find Bach's here and Coy's here.

I'm not endorsing anyone because I don't know any of the candidates personally. That said, there are a number of worthwhile candidates out there. If you are eligible to vote, then do your research and VOTE. As Jeff Knox notes, " It is an embarrassment that the greatest political action organization in the country generally gets participation from only about 7% of their members eligible to vote, but that’s the case."

As to a voting strategy, if there is only one or a small number of candidates that you really want, vote only for them. To do otherwise dilutes your vote and makes the lesser candidates (in your opinion) equal to your favorites. While it has been criticized, bullet voting as it is called is effective tactic for helping to elect your preferred candidate or candidates.

UPDATE: Joe DeBergalis has posted a campaign flyer here which does include the organizations that have endorsed him.