Pro-Gun Groups Warn Trump's Pretti Remarks Could Cost GOP Midterm Seats

Second Amendment advocates warned that President Donald Trump's remark that Alex Pretti "should not have been carrying a gun" could depress Republican turnout and cost GOP candidates in competitive House and Senate races in November, gun-rights leaders said.

The comments followed the Jan. 24, 2026 killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis, and records show Pretti had a valid permit to carry a Sig Sauer P320 9 mm while Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara said there was no evidence Pretti violated state gun laws.

Dudley Brown, president of the National Association for Gun Rights, told The New York Times that arguments Pretti should not have been armed were "patently ludicrous" and warned a 4 to 6 percentage point drop in turnout could flip marginal districts away from Republicans.

Reactions among gun-rights organizations ranged from downplaying the president's remarks to threats of reduced participation, and Bryan Strawser, chairman of the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, told The New York Times he hopes it was "the president speaking out of turn."

Gun-rights leaders said they will push for a public correction or clarification from President Donald Trump before November and that failure to do so could lead to lower turnout, reduced donations and targeted voter mobilization shifts, organizers and leaders said.