Share of Americans who favor stricter gun laws has increased since 2017
Despite deep partisan divisions on the issue, there has been a modest rise in support for stricter gun laws in the United States since 2017.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Despite deep partisan divisions on the issue, there has been a modest rise in support for stricter gun laws in the United States since 2017.
Ahead of the Senate’s deliberations over Kavanaugh, here’s a look at where the public stands on some of the major legal, political and social issues that could come before the Supreme Court in the years ahead.
Pew Research Center President Michael Dimock examines the changes – some profound, some subtle – that the U.S. experienced during Barack Obama’s presidency.
Although most Americans think the number of gun crimes has risen, the U.S. gun homicide rate has actually stabilized somewhat in recent years.
In December 2014, the balance of opinion flipped: For the first time, more Americans say protecting gun rights (52%) is more important than controlling gun ownership (46%).
Surveys have found a shift in gun policy attitudes over time. Here’s a look at how public opinion on the subject is measured.
#5: 37% of adults reported having a gun in their household in 2013.
After the horrific shootings at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., a year ago claiming the lives of 20 children and six adults, there was a sense in the country – especially among gun-control supporters — that the tragedy would be different from similar ones in the past and push the nation to action. But ultimately, a sustained change in public opinion did not materialize, and a bill to tighten gun laws died in the Senate.
In the year since the Newtown school shootings, most new state gun laws have loosened rather than tightened restrictions.
Supporters of gun-rights tend to feel more strongly about their position, and more willing to act on it politically, than backers of gun-control legislation.
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