In a surprising twist that came down to the wire, Georgia’s Republican voters handed Rep. Mike Collins a decisive victory in Tuesday’s U-mail ballot-only special election runoff against former football coach Derek Dooley, setting him up as the GOP candidate for November’s U.S. Senate race. Collins, who has earned solid marks from the NRA and GOA for his consistent pro-2A votes—including support for national reciprocity bills and opposition to red-flag laws—now represents a far stronger choice for gun owners than the sports-coach-turned-politician competitor he beat. Dooley’s ambiguous stance on firearms, combined with his lack of legislative track record, left Second Amendment supporters uneasy; his absence of any real policy depth left him open to being swayed by anti-gun moderate Republicans who already exist in Washington.

The implications go beyond Georgia’s November ballot: Collins’ triumph means the 2A community can count on a candidate who understands Firearms Owners Protection Act spirit spirit and FOPA’s travel protections, who knows the importance of hearing-protection devices being exempt from NFA rules