Virginia Democrats were forced to abandon part of their extremist gun control agenda, the confiscations of semi-automatic firearms from law abiding citizens, on Monday as opposition to their anti-Second Amendment agenda has exploded across the state.

“Governor Ralph Northam (D.) and incoming Senate majority leader Dick Saslaw (D.) said they will no longer pursue their marquee plan to ban the possession of ‘assault weapons,'” The Free Beacon reported. “Instead, they will include a provision to allow Virginians to keep the firearms they already own. The reversal comes before the newly elected Democratic majority has even been sworn in, after a majority of the state’s counties declared themselves ‘Second Amendment sanctuaries.'”

Northam spokeswoman Alena Yarmosky said in a statement Monday evening:

In this case, the governor’s assault weapons ban will include a grandfather clause for individuals who already own assault weapons, with the requirement they register their weapons before the end of a designated grace period. Additional details on this and all other bills will be announced prior to the start of the upcoming session.

Opposition to Democrats’ extreme gun control policies has surged since the recent election with numerous counties, including solid blue counties, showing opposition to the anti-freedom agenda.

In early December, “an overflow crowd of gun-rights supporters turned out … to the Democratic-controlled Fairfax County Board of Supervisors meeting to push the locality to declare it would not help enforce unconstitutional gun laws,” The Free Beacon reported. “After sitting quietly through two hours of discussion about baseball-field lighting, the crowd erupted at the end of each pro-gun speech during the public-comment period.”

“The show of opposition to new gun-control proposals filed by Virginia Democrats, particularly in deep-blue Fairfax County, may cause some of the newly elected Democratic members of the Virginia General Assembly to proceed with caution before backing any bill. Democrats captured full control of the state legislature in the most recent election but enjoy only a one-vote majority in the Senate and a five-vote majority in the House of Delegates,” The Free Beacon added. “If public demonstrations like Tuesday’s are able to persuade even two Democratic senators to oppose proposed measures, that would mean the demise of the most radical components of Gov. Ralph Northam’s (D.) gun-control plans.”

Pro-freedom groups that advocate for the Second Amendment cautioned against thinking that the Democrats’ cave on gun confiscation was a victory, warning that Democrats are still coming after firearms.

“Gov. Northam and the rest of Virginia’s anti-gun politicians’ idea of a compromise is to threaten hundreds of thousands of Virginians with felonies unless they submit to government control,” NRA spokeswoman Catherine Mortensen told the Free Beacon. “The NRA will stand with the Commonwealth’s law-abiding gun owners in solidarity to oppose gun bans, confiscations, and registrations.”

Virginia Citizens Defense League President Philip Van Cleave indicated that Democrats’ abandonment of their gun confiscation plan was a direct result of people getting involved in political activism and pushing back on their extreme policies.

“We’ve been down this compromise road and their version of a compromise is they never give up anything,” Van Cleave said. “We are expected to give up something every time and we’re not doing it anymore. I think gun owners are tired of this and they’re gonna stand up and fight this stuff.”

On Democrats concession that they will allow people to keep the firearms they already own, Van Cleave said, “The problem with what his suggestion is it’s still taking away guns. Yeah, we get to keep our AR-15s, but what about the next generation and the generation after them? Who are we to negotiate away their rights and accept this crap?”

On Tuesday, WHSV reported that the Nelson County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution to become a Second Amendment sanctuary — which has been passed by over 40 other localities, which the Free Beacon notes is the majority of the state — in support of their citizens’ Second Amendment rights and in defiance of Democrats’ anti-freedom agenda.