I-1639 was the only state gun-regulations measure on the Nov. 6 ballot anywhere in the country. It passed Tuesday with 60 percent of the vote in election-night returns.
A state gun-regulations ballot measure seeking to make Washington’s firearms laws among the strictest in the country[1] passed Tuesday with 60 percent of the vote in election-night returns.
The measure led in large western counties and trailed in most eastern counties. Votes will continue be counted in the coming days.
“My generation has been defined by gun violence. We have been defined by continued and repeated inaction by our elected officials,” Stephen Paolini, 22-year-old campaign manager for Initiative 1639, said at a gathering at Seattle’s Edgewater Hotel where Tuesday’s results drew cheers. “I hope tonight this victory is a message to our elected officials: Enough is enough.”
I-1639 also will enact a storage law. Gun owners who don’t secure their firearms with devices such as a trigger lock or safe could be charged with gross misdemeanor or felony “community endangerment” crimes for allowing prohibited people (such as children) to access and display or use the weapons.
Proponents of the measure[4] said I-1639 would address the root causes of many mass shootings and generally help to reduce gun violence.
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