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As a County Commissioner, I voted three years ago to make Washington County a Second Amendment "sanctuary" county. As a former History professor and student of the American Founding, I have always actively supported the constitutional right of citizens to own a firearm.
I recently looked back at the comments I made that day and they still hold true. I referenced statements made by candidate Biden about his position on the Second Amendment during his campaign. In fact, I said at that time....."In my view, a Biden administration is a significant threat to Americans' constitutional right to keep and bear arms." Sadly, that has been true.
When the Ohio legislature debated expanding the right to carry a concealed firearm in 2021, gun-control advocates lectured the public that such a law would turn our state into the "wild west." The legislature passed that law and responsible Ohio gun owners have since enjoyed the right to concealed carry without a permit.
Just recently, the first study on firearm violence since this legislative expansion of gun rights was released. The study, conducted by Bowling Green State University, found that "Crimes involving firearms declined significantly in Akron, Columbus and Toledo between June 2021 and June 2023." Furthermore, the concealed carry law change did not appear to have "any appreciable effect" on law enforcement injuries or deaths.
In other words, the Ohio legislature expanded freedom and the state did not become the "wild west." As a candidate for State Representative, I believe it is essential to protect Second Amendment rights as they are the final guarantor of all the other rights we enjoy as Americans.