Idaho Voters Select Iconic Frontier Lever-Action Rifle as State’s Official Firearm

Idaho is on track to become the 12th state with a designated state firearm. Voters selected the Winchester Model 1873, “The Gun that Won the West,” from a list of six historic weapons.

The Model 1873 took 165,147 votes (more than 31 percent) of votes cast. It edged out another lever action Winchester, the Model 1894. That rifle came in second place with 25 percent of the vote.

Also on the ballot were the Colt Single Action Army Revolver, possibly the best-known Old West six shooter known as the Peacemaker.

The list was rounded out by the Remington Model 700 bolt action rifle and two well known military guns: the M1911 .45 automatic Colt pistol and the M1 Garand rifle, which was the United States’ main battle rifle in World War II.

House Bill 932, which called for the question to be placed on the Nov. 3 midterm election ballot, summarized the role of firearms in U.S. history, from the American Revolution to westward expansion including the settling of Idaho.

“It is appropriate to engage the people of Idaho in selecting a firearm to be designated as the official state gun of Idaho,” House Bill 932 states.

One Second Amendment advocate said Idaho voters sent a message, especially considering the results of the 2026 midterm election. Nationally, the Democrats claimed 256 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and could be on track to expand that to 261 seats. Meanwhile, the GOP presence could drop to 174 seats.

“Idaho voters just reminded the country what a Second Amendment stronghold looks like by choosing an official state gun. While some states flip-flop and hand power to anti-gun Democrats who treat the Constitution like a suggestion, Idahoans doubled down on their heritage and their rights,” Chris Stone, director of state and local affairs for Gun Owners of America, stated in an email to The Epoch Times.

Now that the voters have given the idea their imprimatur, the legislature will need to pass a bill to be signed by the governor making the designation official.

Lever-action rifles were a giant leap forward in firearms technology, the Henry repeating lever-action in 1860 an early example. The lever-action enabled one marksman to fire multiple shots in less time than it took to load and shoot one round with a muzzle loader.

In one Civil War anecdote, a Confederate soldier reportedly called the lever-action “that damned Yankee rifle you load on Sunday and shoot all week.”

The 1873 earned the title “The Gun that Won the West” because it was the first lever-action rifle built for the harsh conditions of the frontier. Early lever-action rifles used brass in their receivers, which limited the ammunition they could shoot.

In the Model 1873, Winchester addressed those issues. With a beefier iron receiver that the company eventually converted to steel, the rifle could handle more powerful loads and better withstand the weather and dust of the West. The Model 1873 became the go-to rifle for hunting, self-defense, and predator control among ranchers and pioneers.

House Bill 932 states that the tradition of firearms ownership continues to the present day.

“Today, firearms support Idaho’s thriving hunting and recreational shooting culture. Idaho has built a strong tradition of responsible gun ownership while having one of the highest per-capita gun ownership rates in the nation,” the bill reads.

While they are largely symbolic, state-designated objects serve a number of purposes. They celebrate a state’s history, culture, geography, and traditions. They are often adopted as a means of identifying a state—such as Texas’s designation as “The Lone Star State”—and its people.

The process of adopting such designations varies from state-to-state, though they usually include a bill or resolution in the state’s legislature or general assembly and the approval of the governor or a state historic or arts commission.

In Idaho, the Winchester Model 1873 will only become the state’s official gun if the governor signs into law a bill passed by the legislature. An item may be chosen for its cultural or historical significance to the state, or simply because it was invented there.

For example, Missouri chose the Hawken rifle, a popular muzzleloader from the 1820s. The rifle was first manufactured and sold in St. Louis. It became a favorite of trappers, pioneers, and mountain men who passed through the city on their way West.

Though such designation rarely carries any legal authority, it can be used for commercial, tourism, and educational purposes.

A representative of the country’s oldest Second Amendment advocacy organization said House Bill 932 shows Idahoans’ support for the Second Amendment.

“Their biggest Second Amendment issue was to select their official firearm,” Justin Davis, director of public affairs for the National Rifle Association, told The Epoch Times.

“I wish that all of the states had that issue. It shows their respect for their Constitutional rights and freedom.”

Other Official Guns

The 11 other states and their official firearms include Alaska, which made the pre-1964 Winchester Model 70 its official bolt-action rifle; and Arizona, where the Colt Single Action Army revolver is the state’s official firearm.

Arkansas’s official firearm is the shotgun. Indiana chose the Grouseland Rifle, which was built between 1803 and 1812 by John Small, Indiana’s first sheriff. Indiana is the only state on the list to designate a single firearm rather than a commercially produced gun.

Kentucky designated the Kentucky Long Rifle as the official gun of the commonwealth, and Missouri chose the Hawken rifle to be the state’s official rifle.

The Pennsylvania Long Rifle is the official firearm of the Commonwealth for Pennsylvania. The Barrett Model 82/M107 is the official rifle of Tennessee. Texas has two official firearms. The cannon is Texas’s official state gun, and the original 1847 Colt Walker pistol is the state’s official handgun.

Utah has designated the John M. Browning-designed M1911 automatic pistol as its state firearm, and West Virginia chose the Hall Flintlock Model 1819 as its official state firearm.