A Compilation Of Endorsements For The NRA Board Election

The NRA Directors election is upon us again. The ballots must be received by March 22, 2015 to be counted. Eligibility to vote is limited to Life Members or Annual Members with five or more years of continuous membership. Ballots of those eligible to vote should have been in your February American Rifleman, American Hunter, or America's 1st Freedom magazines.

In the chart below, I have compiled the endorsements that I could find. Some came directly from the candidate's statement included in the magazine, some came from candidate's websites, and finally some came from what I consider reliable sources. I will discuss those reliable sources after the chart. The chart also indicates whether a candidate was put on the ballot by the Nominating Committee or through the petition process. A "Y" stands for placement on the ballot by the Nominating Committee while a "P" stands placement on the ballot by the petition process.

First	Last	NomComm	Endorsements
Scott	Bach	Y	SOF, Knox,
William	Bachenberg	Y
Ronnie	Barrett	Y
John	Brown	Y
Robert	Brown	Y	NYSRPA, MSSA, FCofCO,CO2AA
David	Coy	Y	SOF,MiRPA, DeSSA
Joseph	DeBergalis	Y	SOF, Knox,N-SSA,AR15.com, IDPA, NYSRPA,TFC
Edie	Fleeman	Y
Joel	Friedman	Y	CRPA
Maria	Heil	Y	Knox
Antonio	Hernandez	Y	SOF
Steve	Hornady	Y
David	Keene	Y	SOF
Timothy	Knight	P	SOF, Knox,CO2AA
Herbert	Lanford	Y
Sean	Maloney	P	SOF, Knox,CO2AA,BFA
Virginia	McLemore	P	Knox
Carolyn	Meadows	Y
John	Milius	Y
Bill	Miller	Y
Owen Buz	Mills	Y
Grover	Norquist	Y
Robert	Nosler	Y
Timothy	Pawol	Y
Brian	Pemberton	P
Harold	Rocketto	P
Wayne Anthony	Ross	Y	SOF
Don	Saba	Y
William	Satterfield	Y	SOF
Mecedes	Schlapp	Y
Ronald	Schmeits	Y	SOF
John	Sigler	Y
Robert	Unkovic	Y	SOF
Robert	Viden	P	SOF, Knox,
Robert	Wos	Y
Legend:
SOF - Soldier of Fortune
Knox - Jeff Knox, Firearms Coalition
NYSRPA - NY State Rifle & Pistol Assoc.
FCofCO - Firearms Coalition of Colorado
MSSA - Montana Shooting Sports Assoc.
MiRPA - Michigan Rifle & Pistol Assoc.
DeSSA - Delaware State Sportsman's Assoc.
N-SSA - North-South Skirmish Assoc.
IDPA - International Defensive Pistol Assoc.
TFC - Texas Firearms Coalition
CRPA - California Rifle & Pistol Assoc.
CO2AA - Colorado 2nd Amendment Assoc.
BFA - Buckeye Firearms Assoc.

Lt. Col. Robert Brown offers his endorsements for the NRA Board annually at Soldier of Fortune magazine. Col. Brown is the publisher of the magazine and a long-time member of the NRA Board. He is also one who is not afraid to rock the boat. In this year's endorsements, he endorses 10 current board members including Robert Viden who is a petition candidate. He also endorsed both Tim Knight and Sean Maloney who are petition candidates. He makes it a point not to endorse John Brown. Mr. Brown, who is head of the NFA Trade and Collectors Association, has been accused of being too cozy with the ATF and has been called a "ATF snitch" by some.

The other set of endorsements that I consider reliable are from Jeff Knox of the Firearms Coalition. Jeff and his family have been fighting to reform the NRA since the 1977 Cincinnati Revolt and before. Jeff is the son of the late Neal Knox who at one time headed the NRA-ILA. Jeff suggests - and I would second it - that you only vote for a handful of people as it gives more weight to those for whom you vote. Jeff's endorsements and rationale for these candidates is below:

For 2015 I am endorsing the following seven candidates:

1. Timothy Knight, Durango, Colorado is a proven, effective, grassroots activist who orchestrated the stunning recalls of anti-rights senators in Colorado. He is not an NRA insider, and was nominated by petition of the members, not the Nominating Committee.

2. Sean Maloney, Liberty Township, Ohio is an attorney who has an extensive record of grassroots activism and comes highly recommended by people I trust.

3. Virginia McLemore, Socorro, New Mexico, is an active competitive shooter and youth training volunteer. She has served in leadership in her state association which I feel has been neglected by NRA in the past. Rural, western, and competitive shooting representation is needed on the Board.

4. Maria Heil, New Freedom, Pennsylvania, was on my endorsement list 3 years ago and she has proven herself a worthy pick. I’d like to see her continue on the Board for another term now that she knows the ropes.

5. Robert Viden, Glassboro, New Jersey, has served on the Board off and on for a number of years. He knows how to get things done and does a lot when given the opportunity. I have endorsed Bob in the past, and think he’s earned my support. For whatever reason, he tends to come in low in the vote totals, so a little extra support could make all the difference for him.

6. Joseph DeBergalis, West Seneca, New York, has demonstrated much more willingness to communicate with the membership and take action on their behalf than most of the directors. I endorsed him in his first run and he won handily. When he ran for reelection, I did not consider him to be in jeopardy of losing, so I did not offer an endorsement. That came close to being a big mistake as he barely made the cut that year. This year I don’t want to take that chance. I’d like to see Joe continue on the Board.

7. Scott Bach, Newfoundland, New Jersey. Scott is a good friend who is doing yeoman’s work deep in enemy territory. Normally Scott comes in high in the voting, but whenever there is more than one candidate from the same state, voters tend to choose one or the other. With my endorsement of Bob Viden, I want to reinforce support for Scott.

Jeff also says for whom he wouldn't vote. These three are John Milius, the aforementioned John Brown, and Grover Norquist.  He says no to Milius for having lied to the board and bragged about it, no to Brown due to the conflicting interests of the NRA and the NFATCA (among other things), and no to Norquist because he seems more interested in other political matters than the Second Amendment.

In years gone past, Dave Hardy at Of Arms and the Law and Sebastian at Shall Not Be Infringed have had their own endorsements. Neither has issued any endorsements so far this year.

I really don't do endorsements but I will say that Timothy Knight seems very appealing to me as a candidate due to his work in the trenches to recall Sen. Angela Giron and Sen. President John Morse. This kind of solid grassroots activist experience is needed on the board.

Remember, your ballot must be received by March 22nd to be counted. Don't procrastinate!