The Lewis County Fair opens today in Lowville. Organizers are allowing the gun rights group SCOPE to raffle off three firearms. Last week, the Jefferson County Fair banned SCOPE from renting a booth. Organizers there claimed guns were too controversial to allow at a family event.
Doug Hanno, president of the Lewis County Fair, said hunting and sportsman groups sell raffle tickets for their firearms at the fair every year.
“Lewis County is a huge hunting and sportsman club area. It’s something that people at our fair look for. They like that kind of an exhibit," said Hanno.
Hanno said the recent gun violence across the country has not made him rethink his decision to allow gun raffles at the fair. He says the Lewis County Fair doesn't turn away any vendors who have a legal right to be there, even if some may not agree with their exhibit.