What to Know About the NRA’s Annual Meeting This Weekend Featuring Donald Trump

The National Rifle Association (NRA) is holding its annual meeting this weekend in Indianapolis, kicking off on Friday with a cattle call of far-right candidates vying for the Republican nomination for president, including Donald Trump, Mike Pence, and a video appearance by Ron DeSantis. This is the first time the NRA has held an annual meeting in Indianapolis since its 2019 meeting which descended into chaos, inflighting, and a revolt over the organization’s leadership and financial mismanagement. 

As you cover this year’s NRA convention, here’s what to know about the NRA’s hobbled state: 

• Financial: NRA membership continues to fall, with recent reports showing the NRA has lost over one million members since the last time the NRA came to Indianapolis, dropping to a 10-year membership low. NRA revenue from membership dues is down nearly $73 million, or more than 40 percent, since 2018. The drop in membership revenue poses serious threats to the ability of the organization to both provide services to members and spend politically. 

• Political: The NRA is simply not the political player it once was. In 2016, it was Trump’s biggest outside spender, spending $31.2 million to support his campaign. By 2020, spending for Trump was cut nearly 47%, dropping to $16.6 million in support of the president’s failed re-election campaign. Additionally, the NRA was dealt a major loss last summer when 15 Republican Senators supported federal gun safety legislation over the NRA’s objections, and last fall, Everytown-endorsed candidates beat NRA-endorsed ones in 73% of the races where they faced off. 

• Legal: NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre’s frequent private jet travel paid for by the organization has been a key part of the lawsuit the NRA continues to face from the New York Attorney General for alleged improper insider transactions and financial mismanagement. That case is expected to go to trial later this year and could result in LaPierre’s removal from the organization. 

Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund has chronicled the revelations from the NRA’s various legal woes at NRAWatch.org. For further information about the state of play for the NRA or to arrange an interview with either an Everytown expert or Indiana Moms Demand Action volunteer, please email [email protected].