In its first electoral cycle, Kelly said the organization aimed to devote as much money to support candidates advocating for gun safety laws as the National Rifle Association of America (NRA) had spent in the 2012 election.

[9][10] GIFFORDS Law Center also files amicus curiae briefs and takes other legal action to protect, enforce and strengthen gun regulations.

[18] The largest share of the group's spending was in the race for the House seat previously held by Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona's second district.

[18] In 2016, GIFFORDS spent more than $2 million supporting New Hampshire Democrat Maggie Hassan in her bid to unseat Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte, who had voted against expanding background checks for gun purchases.

[21] Giffords and Kelly wrote that Toomey and Kirk "broke from the gun lobby" to support a bill to close the gun-show loophole.

[26] The organization particularly faced criticism over its endorsement of incumbent Republican Leonard Lance in New Jersey's 7th District over Democratic challenger Tom Malinowski.

[29][30] Commentators and editorial pages noted that work by GIFFORDS and other gun violence prevention organizations had been a powerful element in the 2018 election cycle.

The Washington Post editorial board cited the work of GIFFORDS and wrote that the election marked a "shift in the politics of gun control; no longer is it a third rail to be avoided at all costs.

[34] In 2019, GIFFORDS co-hosted the first-ever presidential forum on gun safety, attended by nine leading Democratic candidates for president and emceed by Craig Melvin of NBC and MSNBC.

In the Senate, GIFFORDS supported John Hickenlooper of Colorado against an incumbent backed by the NRA, investing in digital and television advertisements and hosting local events.

Successful candidates backed by GIFFORDS include Senators John Fetterman, Michael Bennet, and Raphael Warnock and Governors Josh Shapiro, Gretchen Whitmer, Tim Walz, Tony Evers, Wes Moore, and Maura Healey.

According to NBC News, the spending by GIFFORDS “will cover paid TV and digital ads, direct mail (in English and Spanish), new polls to help allies hone their messages and the deployment of staffers and surrogates.”[40] GIFFORDS concentrated its resources in battleground states, including Michigan and Arizona, and also allocated spending to competitive US House of Representatives races in California and New York.

The organization has helped link local and regional groups into a campaign to register voters in the hopes of electing lawmakers who support gun safety laws.