Losing gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey says he’ll ‘die’ on his front porch in defiance of Illinois assault weapons ban

Former Illinois Republican gubernatorial nominee Darren Bailey posted a video Friday in opposition to the state’s assault weapons ban where in a defiant speech, he said he would die on his front porch to oppose it.

“I will not allow anyone to come and take anything from me, and if need be as I quoted before, I will die on this front porch before I give up any of my Second Amendment freedoms,” Bailey said in the Facebook Live video.

Losing Illinois gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey (R) speaks out against the Illinois Supreme Court’s decision upholding an assault rifle ban: “I will die on this front porch before I give up any of my Second Amendment freedoms.” pic.twitter.com/O8ACuAyemH

— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) August 11, 2023

The Protect Illinois Communities Act was signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) on Jan. 10 and it bans the sale and distribution of assault weapons, high-capacity magazines and other rapid-firing devices within the state. After Republican lawmakers filed a challenge, the Illinois Supreme Court upheld the law’s constitutionality Friday in a 4-3 ruling.

One of the lawmakers behind the lawsuit, state Rep. Dan Caulkins (R-Duluth), reacted to the ruling by claiming the Court was rigged in favor of Democrats — despite justices being democratically elected by voters.

“When you have a supreme court where the last two justices that were elected benefitted greatly from political contributions from the governor, it is really hard to be realistic,” Caulkins told reporters at the Illinois State Fair.

Bailey served as a member of both the Illinois Senate and House before losing in the gubernatorial general election to the incumbent Pritzker last November by over 12 percentage points. He is currently running for the state’s 12^th Congressional District in an attempt to unseat incumbent U.S. Rep. Mike Bost (R).