WASHINGTON - A new analysis by the Sunlight Foundation reviews the 26 U.S. Senators who represent likely swing votes in any gun control legislation brought to the floor. At the top of the list: Sens. Mark Udall (D-CO) and Mark Kirk (R-IL).
In conducting the analysis, Sunlight collected relevant data on 26 senators (19 Democrats, 2 Independents and 5 Republicans) who they saw as potentially conflicted on a gun vote. That is, any Republican that didn’t get at least an A rating from the NRA, and any Democrat who didn’t get an "F" rating. Sunlight created a 0-10 scoring system on factors that could lead to a higher likelihood of opposing gun control legislation.
- More contributions by gun rights groups to the senator in the last election (and fewer contributions to the senator’s opponent).
- A lower Obama vote share in the 2012 election in the senator’s state.
- More registered firearm and “destructive device” dealers, manufacturers, importers and exporters per 100,000 residents in the senator’s state.
The most likely swing votes are shown below In order of those most likely to support gun control. The rest of the list is of HERE.
