Gun control group Everytown to spend $1.25 million on competitive state legislatures

Between the lines: Everytown, which was cofounded by now-presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg, spent $2.5 million to help flip the Virginia General Assembly and promoted pro-gun safety candidates last year — outspending the NRA.

• The commonwealth's now Democratic majority has swiftly passed a slew of gun control measures, including universal background checks on gun purchases.
• The new 2020 campaign ads will tell state lawmakers that they are "ON NOTICE" with a message to pass gun reform measures.

"Listen to the public and pass meaningful gun safety laws, or bear the brunt of a targeted campaign to hold you accountable for your inaction in 2020," Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action, a part of Everytown for Gun Safety, said in a statement.

• "The outcome of Virginia's 2019 election should be a lesson to all lawmakers."

By the numbers: Just over half of likely voters Everytown polled in the five targeted states said they supported stronger gun laws, with 82% of those gun control supporters saying the issue was "very important" to their 2020 vote. Just 10% said they wanted more relaxed gun laws.

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