AUSTIN, Tex. — As a push to allow openly carrying handguns in Texas seems to build momentum, the biggest fight may be among Second Amendment advocates themselves.

A conflict is emerging over how far changes to the current state law should go, and some gun-rights supporters fear that the divide may sink efforts to lift handgun restrictions during the legislative session that begins in January.

“If the acrimony between the various groups gets too pronounced, then nothing will pass,” said Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who helped to get the state’s concealed handgun law passed in 1995, when he was a state senator. “Their challenge very simply is to recognize that the legislative process is designed to kill legislation and to drop their disagreements, even if it’s not perfect.”

The law allows the open carrying of long guns like rifles and shotguns. Texas is one of six states that specifically prohibit the open carrying of handguns, according to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.