Drew Wilson
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris King announced Tuesday that he’s earned the “Moms Demand Action Gun Sense Candidate distinction” in recognition of his gun control.
“After calling for a ban on assault weapons in my very first speech of this campaign, it’s an honor to receive the Gun Sense Candidate distinction,” King said.
“We need courageous leaders who will bring fresh ideas and new leadership to end the scourge of gun violence in Florida –– I’ll never hesitate to stand up to the gun lobby and the political establishment protecting it in Tallahassee.”
Included in the announcement was a clip of King speaking to marchers at the Orlando March for Our Lives rally, one of 800-plus organized after the Feb. 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America is an advocacy group formed in the wake of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn.
In the six years since it started, the group has established a chapter in every state and, along with Mayors Against Illegal Guns and the Everytown Survivor Network, is part of Everytown for Gun Safety.
King’s distinction from Moms Demand Action comes four days after the group waded into the crowded Democratic Primary for Florida’s 27th Congressional District to extend a candidate distinction to state Rep. David Richardson and two weeks after they did the same for former Congresswoman Gwen Graham, one of King’s opponents in the gubernatorial primary.
King, an Orlando-area businessman, faces Graham, Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum and former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine in the primary to replace termed-out Gov. Rick Scott.
On the Republican side, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and Northeast Florida U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis have declared, while House Speaker Richard Corcoran is expected to join them in the primary in the coming weeks.
King’s video is below.
