CCW Is On The Ballot In Randolph County, Illinois

The voters in Randolph County, Illinois will see a ballot measure dealing with concealed carry in November. It is an advisory vote that will carry no legal weight but it certainly will carry a lot of symbolic weight.

The very last item on the ballot is an advisory question that asks: "Shall any individual who is not prohibited from possessing firearms under the law be allowed to conceal, possess, carry and or transport firearms in any manner free from infringement?

Randolph County resident Arlyn Fisk he says if it were legal, he might not carry a firearm on his hip all the time, but he'd like to have the right to do so.

"I believe it to be a second amendment right to any citizen of the United States, provided they're upstanding and law abiding," said Fisk. "But we're in the only state in the union that doesn't allow concealed carry."

That's why Fisk and others passed petitions around town to get this on the ballot and put the issue to Randolph County voters.

"I think this is going to pass overwhelmingly, but we'll see," said Randolph County Board chairman Terry Luehr. Luehr says if the advisory question does pass it won't mean Randolph county residents can start carrying concealed firearms.

"We can't pass any laws on the county that supersedes the state," said Luehr. "So even if this passes on the county ballot, it doesn't really mean anything."

As Mr. Fisk notes that even if the vote is advisory, it will put politicians on notice especially if it gets the expected high level of support.

Randolph County is located south-east of St. Louis and is the only Illinois county that has parts of its territory on the western side of the Mississippi River. It is also home to the World Shooting and Recreational Complex in Sparta.

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