Will it show at the polling stations?
Utahn Matt Schlentz first picked up a firearm when he was about 3 years old, taught how to shoot by his father. He started with BB guns, graduated to .22-caliber rifles, and now, at 23, has a concealed-carry permit, which he takes advantage of every day.
His gun collection includes semiautomatic rifles similar to the Sig Sauer MCX, the type of weapon Omar Mateen used during his deadly June 12 rampage at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla. As a strong Second Amendment supporter, Schlentz often is appalled when he reads about new gun-control laws being passed in other states.
"In California, they're literally policing what capacity magazines you can have," Schlentz says. "It's absolutely asinine."
Schlentz, an out and proud gay man, is president of the Utah chapter of the Pink Pistols, a national pro-gun LGBT organization. He's well aware that in some ways, telling gay friends that he's a staunch proponent of gun rights is kind of like coming out of the closet all over again.
"I get mixed reviews," Schlentz says. "I don't flaunt it, so people who've known me for years are surprised when they find out I carry a gun. Some think it's really cool. And then I get people who just give me dirty looks. But I absolutely respect their right to feel that way."
While lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities often are perceived as politically liberal, they're not monolithic — witness the existence of the Log Cabin Republicans. On the surface, it may be easy to believe that gay people largely would support gun limits, especially since one of the movement's early icons, Harvey Milk, was shot to death by an assassin in 1978.