Iowa Gun Owners is Iowa’s only No Compromise gun rights organization.

We were formed in January of 2009 to combat Iowa’s abusive “may issue” permit system wherein the county sheriff had the arbitrary power to decide who could carry a gun for self-defense and who could not.

If you were friends with the sheriff you were able to carry. But if the sheriff didn’t like your religion, social status, politics, or what you did for a living you had no chance of being able to carry a gun to defend your family.

We introduced Constitutional Carry into the General Assembly in 2009. Constitutional Carry is a simple idea that stems from the 2nd Amendment. Mirroring the laws in states like Alaska, Arizona, and Vermont, Constitutional Carry would allow any law abiding Iowan the right to carry a gun for any reason except the commission of a crime – WITHOUT needing government permission.

Of course our legislation still allowed for a permit for reciprocity purposes.

In 2010 the anti-gun crowd in Des Moines knew that there was a grassroots gun rights lobby in Iowa that would hold them accountable for their actions for the first time in years.

So once they voted to kill Constitutional Carry they voted to approve Iowa’s current “Shall Issue” bill that was brought forth by less principled organizations. Of course, since that bill was passed by anti-gun legislators it was full of anti-gun provisions.

But Iowa Gun Owners went to work during the last election cycle exposing those politicians who were desperately seeking political cover by voting for the watered down “regulated carry” bill.

We exposed the records and candidate surveys of all the candidates to our members and other interested Iowans. Using our direct mail and email broadcast systems we communicated with over 175,000 Iowans letting them know which candidates were pro-gun and who was just saying that they were.

On election day almost two dozen anti-gun State Representatives and State Senators were booted out of office as a result of this work.

In the 2011 legislative session IGO members played a vital role in killing anti-gun legislation that was making its way out of the Senate. We also obtained record, roll call votes in the House on Constitutional Carry so that we would know which representatives were pro-gun and which ones lied to us during their election campaign.

In 2011 it was House Republicans, who had made promise after promise to gun owners to advance second amendment issues, who broke their promises and let all the gun bills die.

Iowa Gun Owners was there to sound the alarm and hold them to account. Using mail, email and media outlets we informed Iowans all over the state that their gun rights were being sold out by those who promised to champion them.

That’s what No Compromise means. We exist to fight for gun rights. We do not patronize a political party. We do not cut backroom deals. We don’t take the bribes so often offered to grassroots organizations. We do not assume to have the authority to bargain away some of your rights in exchange for securing others. We will never back down.

Come join the fastest growing gun rights organization in Iowa. As a true grassroots movement we are comprised of farmers, doctors, mechanics, teachers, hunters, military personnel, and retirees. These are the people that we report to – not a boss 1,000 miles away who doesn’t understand Iowa and what Iowans want.

Come join us today!