Gun control was a central tenet of Hillary Clinton's unsuccessful campaign for president, but it would be wrong to interpret the results of the Nov. 8 elections as a slam dunk for those opposed to sensible gun laws. Three states approved ballot initiatives for strengthened gun-control measures despite stiff opposition from the national gun lobby. In statehouse races across the country, gun-control advocates had some success in helping to oust longtime gun-safety opponents.

In a year that saw a record number of ballot initiatives, voters in Nevada, California and Washington state gave their approval to strengthened gun-safety measures while an effort in Maine to expand universal background checks failed narrowly. Nevada's move to expand background checks to private gun sales and transfers was seen as particularly significant since the National Rifle Association invested heavily there with an aggressive campaign that included opposition from the governor and attorney general. According to Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action, the win in Nevada means that nearly half of Americans will now live in states that have closed the background-check loophole.

Other bright spots: Sen. Patrick J. Toomey (Pa.) showed that Republicans who support gun control can still win re-election while Sen. Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) proved that Republicans who oppose gun safety can lose. And in Oregon, every elected leader up for election who voted "yes" on the state's 2015 background-check bill won re-election.

Of course, factors other than gun issues played a role in these elections, and the NRA, which spent a record $30 million, had its victories. But even its early and aggressive backing of Donald Trump was offset by the fact that the most aggressively pro-gun-control presidential candidate in history won the popular vote.

FROM AN EDITORIAL IN THE WASHINGTON POST