Donald Trump promised to sign “concealed carry reciprocity” legislation if he won a second term in office.
The policy would allow gun owners with a concealed carry permit from one state to legally carry their weapons in other states.
Every state in the U.S. permits some form of concealed carry, but the regulations can vary widely.
Some states do not require a permit to carry concealed weapons, while others demand permits, stipulating certain conditions. States such as California and New York have particularly strict requirements.
Trump spelled out his intention to change the law in a 2023 speech, stating: “I will protect the right of self-defense everywhere it is under siege. And I will sign concealed carry reciprocity. Your second amendment does not end at the state line.”
Trump has long campaigned on a pro-gun platform and all three times he has run for president he has received an endorsement from the National Rifle Association (NRA) firearms rights lobby group.
Newsweek reached out to Trump’s campaign for comment via email.
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The NRA and other pro-Second Amendment groups support loosening concealed carry laws nationwide.
The NRA’s official policy goes even further than Trump has promised, advocating for what they call “constitutional carry,” which would allow individuals who can legally possess guns to carry concealed firearms without needing a permit.
This more lenient policy is also supported by other pro-gun groups, including the National Association for Gun Rights.
Democrats and groups that advocate for gun control have long opposed “concealed carry reciprocity.”
In 2017, during Trump’s first presidency, House Republicans passed the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, before it stalled in the Senate.
The Democratic National Committee said at the time: “An NRA pet project, this legislation would force states with more stringent gun standards to comply with looser regulations in other states, risking our public safety and making it more difficult to enforce state laws that save lives.”
Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit group which advocates for gun control, has also criticized Trump’s pledge to enact the concealed carry policy in his second term.
“Trump’s vision for America: Guns everywhere, for anyone, with no questions asked,” they wrote on Instagram in October.
Mass shootings are on the rise in the U.S. There have been more than 455 of them across the country so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. Since 2020, there have been over 600 mass shootings per year.
President Joe Biden enacted various policies to try to stem gun violence throughout his presidency. Trump has promised to undo them.
“In my second term, we will roll back every Biden attack on the Second Amendment—the attacks are fast and furious—starting the minute that Crooked Joe shuffles his way out of the White House,” Trump told a meeting of NRA members in May.
Kamala Harris, by contrast, ran on a campaign of tightening gun control, including introducing universal background checks and an assault weapons ban.
Trump has signaled that he intends to loosen gun control laws through executive action and replacing Steven Dettelbach—branded by the President-elect as an “anti-gun fanatic”—as head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
After Tuesday’s election, when Trump won the presidency and Republicans have taken control of the Senate. Control of the House of Representatives still hangs in the balance, with several races still yet to be declared.
If Republicans secure the House as well, Trump and his party could pass legislation seen by many as controversial, without significant opposition from Democrats.