Florida Ballot Initiative to Ban ‘Assault Weapons’ Falls Far Short

By Chris Eger

Anti-gun advocates needed to get 760,000 signatures for a ballot initiative to ban most semi-auto rifles and shotguns in Florida but paid California-based petition gatherers only came up with 140,000. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
Anti-gun advocates spent a year gathering signatures across the Sunshine State to ban most semi-auto rifles but fell well short of the mark.
The group, Ban Assault Weapons Now, was active throughout 2019 in canvassing from Key West to Pensacola and needed to turn in 766,200 signatures of registered voters to have a shot at making it to this Fall’s general election ballot. In the end, they only gathered 147,304.
The two-page text of the proposed amendment to the Florida state constitution would ban the possession of semiautomatic rifles and shotguns capable of holding more than 10 cartridges in any sort of fixed or detachable magazine. Violation of the ban would be a third-degree felony, which in Florida can be punished by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.
According to campaign documents with the Florida Division of Election, the Miami-based group raised just over $2 million in contributions last year and spent $1.8 million towards the initiative. Top contributors included at least $210,000 from

Source: Guns.com