The US arms lobby, the National Rifle Association, has given its support to John McCain and his vice presidential running mate Sarah Palin.
'John McCain has more than two decades of pro-gun and pro-hunting votes in Congress. He has stood time and again to preserve our Second Amendment freedom and our rich hunting heritage,' the NRA said in a statement.
The lobby, which has almost 4.3m members, recalled that Mr McCain had often voted against restricting the country's gun laws.
Mrs Palin is a paid-up member of the NRA and has trumpeted her skills as a moose-hunter in Alaska.
The NRA's support for the Republican ticket could be important in swing rural states such as Ohio and Pennsylvania, where Mr Obama has been steadily climbing in the polls.
The association has already spent some $2.3m (€1.7m) in negative ads against Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama, and plans to spend more than $10m (€7.4m) by election day on 4 November.
The association ran an ad in today's edition of USA Today saying: 'On November 4, defend freedom. Defeat Obama.'
Mr Obama has said he supports the Second Amendment of the US constitution, which authorises citizens to carry arms, but he has called for better controls on sales.
The NRA also supported President George W Bush when he was elected to the White House in 2000 and then again in 2004.
