Kansas GOP candidate for Congress Kevin Yoder, whose pro-gun and anti-abortion credentials have been put into question by some, courted a conservative crowd at a meet-and-greet event at National Rifle Association offices Wednesday.

Though the invitation did not expressly ask for donations, unlike the $1,000-per-PAC fundraising lunch he held earlier in the day, and there was no sign-up sheet soliciting donations, according to a lobbyist who attended, Yoder did make a pitch to potential donors.

Yoder has a commanding fundraising advantage against Democrat Stephene Moore, the wife of retiring Rep. Dennis Moore, D-Kan., and a registered nurse, in a race that leads slightly in his favor, according to the Cook Political Report.

Among the crowd at the event – attended by about 40 people, according to one participant – were representatives from a conservative group, anti-abortion groups, and lobbyists. Asked about the event outside of NRA headquarters, a few people said they attended because a friend invited them. Many also said they did not know much about the candidate.

Two participants were there to sniff out where Yoder stood on the abortion issue. In the GOP primary, Yoder got by former state Rep. Patricia Lightner despite her endorsement from Kansans for Life. She received $250 in anti-abortion contributions, according to CRP, while Yoder has received none.

Though the NRA endorsed Yoder, gave him an ‘A’ rating, and contributed $500 to his 2008 state campaign, the state representative got a ‘C’ back in 2006 and a ‘D’ in 2004. NRA’s PAC plans to spend about $20 million in this election, of which only about $3 million has been spent, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Last election, the vast majority of this bounty went towards advocating for or against candidates.

Before entering NRA offices, both George Melik of the National Pro-Life Alliance and Karen Cross, political director of the National Right to Life Committee, said they wanted to see where Yoder stood on the abortion issue. After the event, Melik said he would consider donating to the campaign. His group gave Rep. Dennis Moore’s 2008 opponent, Nick Jordan, $500, according to CRP. The National Right to Life Committee PAC spent over $4 million supporting GOP candidates through independent expenditures in 2008.

Thus far, Yoder has not received any contributions from ideological or single-issue donors, which includes gun rights and abortion organizations, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Also attending was lobbyist Larry Hunt of the American Conservative Union, a group which has given Dennis Moore a lifetime rating of 15.5 out of 100.

NRA lobbyist Jeff Freeman, a host at a fundraising lunch for Yoder earlier that day, was setting up the event in what looked like a conference room, with posters of celebrities like actor Tom Selleck and former basketball great Karl Malone defending the Second Amendment.

That’s all this reporter got to see before he was escorted out, as the event was “closed.”

But according to one lobbyist on hand, who preferred to remain anonymous, Yoder told the crowd he was not there for their cash, though he would not turn it down. He also touted that he has raised money largely without PAC help. However, the luncheon earlier in the day asked for $1,000 from PACs. Although only nine percent of Yoder’s contributions come from PACs, his biggest contributors are from the Financial, Insurance and Real Estate sector, according to CRP.

Yoder also told participants that Dennis Moore has not been fiscally or socially conservative, and that his wife would continue governing that way, the lobbyist said.

Click here to download spreadsheet of congressional fundraising events associated with NRA

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