Texas state senator and gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis said she supports a proposed law that would allow people to "open carry" their firearms, the Associated Press reported.
Davis' decision goes against her fellow Democrat party members, but it does put conservative Texans and gun rights supporters on her side. Davis also joins her Republican opponent, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, in backing an open carry law, the AP reported.
Open carrying, which allows people with concealed handgun licenses to wear their pistols at the hip in plain sight, is currently banned in Texas. That could very well change if Davis, who has stated her support for increasing gun rights, is elected governor.
Emmanuel Garcia, spokesman for the Texas Democratic Party, told the AP there is no reason to support an open carry law.
"There is little or no public safety justification for open carry," Garcia said.
For Kellye Burke, head of the Texas Chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, open carrying "is meant to be a sign of intimidation. It's not about protection," she told the AP.
Davis told the AP an open carry law would leave it up to private property owners to decide if firearms can be openly displayed on their property. Davis also said requirements like training and background checks would be put in place to "help ensure that only mentally stable, law-abiding citizens may carry, whether concealed or open."
Campaign wise, Davis' support for an open carry law may be a smart decision. When Former Democrat Governor Ann Richards ran again for office in 1994, she was defeated by Republican George W. Bush. Richards vetoed a concealed handgun law before the race, but Bush made it a key subject of his campaign, the AP reported.
Even some gun rights advocates are a bit hesitant to laud Davis' support. Alice Tripp, spokeswoman for the Texas State Rifle Association, said in the past Davis argued for more limits on gun show sales and was against license holders carrying their guns in classrooms.
"Wendy Davis has a very bad record as far as gun owners go," Tripp told the AP. Davis is an "opportunist," Tripp said.
