The Party-Group Alignment of the NRA and the GOP

This chapter chronicles the party–group alignment of the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the GOP, detailing the constellation of factors that collectively facilitated this alignment, which began in the 1960s, culminated during the 1980 election, and has deepened in the decades since. It reveals how the NRA's cultivation of a group social identity and gun-centric political ideology made its supporters an attractive demographic group to conservative politicians, and laid the foundation for the group's eventual incorporation into the Republican coalition. The chapter also delves into the NRA's motivations for entering the realm of partisan politics, showing how funding challenges and internal conflicts led to the 1977 “Revolt at Cincinnati,” after which the NRA quickly became an active player in GOP politics. Ultimately, the chapter analyzes public opinion polls to document gun owners' increasing close relationship with the Republican Party — especially following the election of President Donald Trump.