Emporia’s Megan Hilbish has been elected to the National Rifle Association Board of Directors, earning one of the top vote totals nationwide and securing a three-year term on the organization’s 76-member governing board.

Hilbish, who was nominated by the NRA Nominating Committee and elected by eligible NRA members, received the second-highest number of votes among all candidates, including incumbents seeking re-election. Results were declared official during the NRA Annual Meeting of Members on April 18 in Houston, Texas.

“It was very humbling and honestly shocking,” Hilbish said. “There were people spending thousands of dollars on advertisements and endorsements, and I didn’t spend anything. I had almost accepted I probably wouldn’t win my first time running.”

Hilbish said being selected by the nominating committee helped place her on the ballot, but election to the board came through votes cast by eligible NRA members, including life members and those with at least five consecutive years of membership.

Her election also brings a unique perspective to the board. Hilbish said she is the only female from Kansas currently serving, one of just two Kansans on the board, and among its youngest members.

The board meets in person three times a year, including annual meetings in Houston and sessions at NRA headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia, along with virtual meetings and committee work throughout the year.

Hilbish said she hopes to focus her service on areas where she has personal and professional experience, including women’s programs, youth outreach, collegiate and competitive shooting.

“I’d like to help show and advocate to young people and women that there’s a space for them within the firearms community,” she said. “I want to help promote the positive side of shooting sports and be a voice for Kansas.”

A longtime competitive shooter, firearms instructor, and former lobbyist on Second Amendment issues, Hilbish said she was motivated to seek a board seat in part because she felt that competitive-shooting perspectives were underrepresented.

She currently serves on a national smallbore committee and expects to continue in that role while taking on additional committee assignments through the board.

Hilbish also said she sees the board playing an important role in restoring trust and strengthening governance following recent challenges within the organization.

“The focus now is accountability, transparency and rebuilding trust,” she said, pointing to what she described as stronger financial oversight and added checks and balances under new leadership.

Outside of her new board role, Hilbish wears many hats. She works full-time as an HR supervisor in Emporia, is building a nonprofit foundation focused on shooting sports education, and recently won two national titles at the American Taekwondo Association national competition while working toward her black belt.

Despite a full schedule, she said serving on the NRA board is an opportunity to contribute on a national level while representing Kansas.

“I want to be a bigger voice not just for women and youth, but for Kansas,” Hilbish said.

Hilbish said she also hopes to raise awareness about educational and training opportunities tied to the NRA, particularly programs for women and youth that may be less familiar in Kansas.

For Hilbish, the election is both a milestone and a responsibility.

“To be trusted by members across the country in this way is something I take seriously,” she said. “I’m honored to serve.”