Forget about the 99% it’s about the 7%

Were you one of the 7% of NRA members who actually voted in the NRA board of directors elections for 2012?

The NRA election is something of a private matter, even searching on the internet; you might have some time invested in the research of the matter before you actually find something. So for those who aren’t indoctrinated into the NRA culture, don’t subscribe to the American Rifleman, or otherwise just have some interest in the 2012 NRA election: here you go.

By the way, let’s not beat around the bush, many of these spots aren’t going to be turned over by choice or otherwise; the majority of the spots are “owned” by celebrity figures, conservative idealists or the old guard at the NRA, which, by the way, isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Only 25 spots are voted on each year.

Only 76 total board members comprise the NRA board of directors.

The NRA Board of Directors

Joe Allbaugh is a former FEMA director, current board member and serves as a lobbyist.

Buster Bachhuber is a retired Wisconsin Attorney and current board member.

Carol Bambury is a professor at Thomas Cooley School of Law and current NRA board of directors member.

Bob Barr is a former Georgia Republican Representative and current board member.

Ronnie Barrett is the founder of Barrett Firearms and current NRA board of directors member.

Clel Baudler is an Iowa H.O.R. Republican representative and current NRA board of directors member.

Ken Blackwell is a former S.O.S. for the state of Ohio and serves on the Republican National Comm. And is a current board member.

Matt Blunt Former Missouri republican Governor and current member of the NRA board.

John Bolton is a former U.N ambassador and a Fox News Channel contributor and serves as the Chairman of the International Affairs Committee for the NRA.

Dan Boren is an Oklahoma Representative and Democrat as well as a current board member for the NRA.

Bob Brown is the head of the Soldier of Fortune Magazine and current NRA board member.

Pete Brownell is the Brownell’s Inc. President and Grandson of the famous gunsmithing supplies outlet’s founder.  He is a current NRA board member.

John Burtt is the Board Chairman for the .50 Caliber institute.  Mr. Burtt is a current NRA board of directors member

Dave Butz is a former player in the NFL and a current board member.

Richard Childress is a former NASCAR driver and current board member for the NRA.

Larry Craig is a former Idaho Senator and Republican and is a current board member.

“Gunny” Lee Ermey is a current board member for the NRA, a well known gun figurehead and industry specific celebrity as well as an actor, who played a Gunny Sergeant in the Kubrick film “Full Metal Jacket”, a role that made him a famous firearms and military icon.

Manny Fernandez is a lobbyist and current NRA board of directors member.

Sandy Froman is a female former president of the National Rifle Association and a current board member.

Jim Gilmore is a Virginia former Governor and a Republican; current board member.

Marion Hammer is a female board member for the NRA as well as a current lobbyist and former NRA President.

Graham Hill is a current NRA board member and a Director for the .50 Caliber Institute as well as a lobbyist.

Steve Hornady is the President of Hornady Ammunition and the son of the Founder of the company.  Mr. Hornady is also a Board member for the National Rifle Association.

Roy Innis is the Charmain of the C.O.R.E. and a current member of the NRA Board of directors.

Joaquin Jackson is a current B.O.D. member of the NRA and is a prominent Texas Ranger formerly.

David Keene is the Current President of the National Rifle Association and a lobbyist.

Tom King is NY state Rifle and Pistol Assn. and currently on the NRA board of directors.

Herbert Lanford is the NRA’s State Assn. president and current member of the NRA B.O.D.

Wayne LaPierre is the Current and longstanding Executive VP and the CEO of The NRA, and functions as a lobbyist for the gun industry.

Karl Malone is a current board member and former NBA superstar for the Utah Jazz.

John Milius is a movie industry powerhouse with several hit movies on his resume as a producer, director or screenwriter. Mr. Milius is a current member of the board of the NRA.

Buz Mills is a board member and the owner of the famous Gunsite, a training facility catering to the gun industry and civilians, military and law enforcement.

Cleta Mitchell is a female NRA board member and an Attorney.

Grover Norquist is Founder of the Americans for Tax Reform organization and author.  Mr. Norquist is a very influential member of the civilian community and is a current board member.  Many believe Grover Norquist to be one of the most powerful political influencers in the United States.

Chuck Norris is an actor and popular cult figure and celebrity.  He is a Celebrity Spokesperson and figurehead for the National Rifle Assn.

Oliver North is a patriot and a current member of the board.  He is a well known figure in the Iran Contra debacle.

Ted Nugent is a Rock and Roll Icon in America, and carries that rockstar attitude and In your face style to the NRA’s camp.  He is a board member for the NRA currently.

John Nugent Indiana Senator and Board member.

Jay Printz, a former Montana Sheriff and a board member.

Todd Rathner is an NRA board member and a lobbyist for the industry as well as the owner of a Safari guide company.

Kayne Robinson is a former president of the NRA and is a divisional Executive Director currently.

Wayne Anthony Ross is an NRA board of directors member and an attorney heavily involved in Alaskan politics and militia works.

Ron Scmeits is a board member and a banking executive.

Tom Selleck is an American Actor and celebrity board member for the NRA.

John Sigler, a former NRA president is a member of the board.

Don Young, Alaska Representative and NRA board of directors member.

NRA Election

NRA election candidates for 2012 with industry endorsements:

Steven Schreiner from Colorado is a write in ballot endorsement, which requires 250 signatures to get on the “ballot”.

Maria Heil a Pennsylvania woman virtually unknown in the midst of the candidates.  She gets some interesting endorsements from industry stalwarts.

Joe DeBergalis is a heavily endorsed candidate as well, drawing public endorsements from dozens of well known bloggers and gun rights advocates.

David Coy is endorsed by several well known industry experts, commenting on his financial experience and ability to give some new insight in bigger NRA objectives.

Scott Bach is the President of the NJ pistol and rifle clubs assoc. and a current NRA board of directors member.  He is endorsed heavily on the blogosphere for re-election.

Bob Viden is another heavily endorsed re-election candidate, serving currently as a board member.

Other notables in the history of the NRA Board of Directors

Harlon Carter is a Former NRA-ILA Executive Director and has held a President and E.V.P. position with the National Rifle Association. He is one of the most extreme Right Wing leaders of the NRA and sister organizations in their history; and is often credited as spearheading the Cincinnati Initiative which led to the widespread replacement of NRA standing officials in the 1977 Annual meeting.

Jeff Cooper needs no introduction, he is the quintessential gun guy, and has done more for tactical training and threat awareness than whole governments.  He served as a board member of the NRA for years. He was the king of straight shooting: both in his words and with his trademark firearms.

Charlton Heston is a former NRA president and American Actor leading the NRA for 5 years between 1998 and 2003.

As a final note: of the 31 candidates on the ballot for the 25 open positions, 29 of them come hand selected by the nomination committee, with only Maria Heil and Mr. Schreiner making the ballot via the petition avenue.

The voting system weights candidates who receive votes where they are the only candidate selected, more heavily than a full ballot.  The so-called bullet ballot method helps to get candidates who are perhaps only separated by a tiny fraction of votes into the board of directors who would otherwise not be well known enough to get on the board.  The NRA reportedly weights these single candidate ballots with a much heavier influence and allows candidates to run low cost grass roots campaigns to get elected.

If you were missed in this list and want to be recognized, or know of someone I missed, please contact me and I will edit the post.  I assembled this list mostly from memory and emails, so it may be a bit lacking.

In all honesty, when you think about how big the NRA is and how much power they wield, it’s surprising to see how easy it is to be considered as a ballot candidate (that is not to say that any one of these candidates is not worthy of consideration).  If you are a patriot and a champion of the Second Amendment, you too could be on the prestigious NRA board of directors.