Public opinion on gun control in the United States

Public opinion on gun control in the United States has been tracked by numerous public opinion organizations and newspapers for more than 20 years.

History

1990s

In the 1990s, public support for gun control led then-president Bill Clinton to sign into law the 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Ban, which remained in force for ten years thereafter before expiring. A 1995 poll found that 58% of Americans were worried the government would not do enough to regulate guns, while only 35% of Americans reported worrying the government would regulate them too much.[1]

2012

A Pew Research Center poll conducted shortly after the 2012 Aurora shooting found that 47% of Americans thought controlling gun ownership was more important than protecting the rights of Americans to own guns, while 46% thought the opposite.[2]

Six days after the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in 2012, another Pew Research Center poll found that 49% of Americans believed that controlling gun ownership was more important than protecting gun rights, while 42% of Americans believed the opposite. This marked the first time more Americans supported gun control more than gun rights since President Barack Obama took office in 2009.[2]

2015

A poll conducted by CBS News and New York Times in October 2015 found that 92% of Americans (and 87% of Republicans) supported universal background checks for all gun sales.[3]

2016

After the Orlando nightclub shooting in June 2016, NBC News and the Wall Street Journal released the results of a poll which found that 50% of Americans were more concerned the government would go too far in regulating guns, while 47% of Americans were more concerned that the government would not do enough to regulate guns.[1] A CBS News poll conducted the same month found that 57% of Americans supported a federal assault weapons ban, 13 percentage points higher than a previous poll they conducted in December 2015 (after the San Bernardino shooting.[4] Also in June 2016, a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll found that about 90% of Americans supported universal background checks.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 Dann, Carrie (26 June 2016). "Poll: Voters Divided on Government Role in Gun Control, Access". NBC News. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  2. 1 2 "After Newtown, Modest Change in Opinion about Gun Control". People & The Press. Pew Research Center. 20 December 2012. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  3. ↑ Bialik, Carl (5 January 2016). "Most Americans Agree With Obama That More Gun Buyers Should Get Background Checks". Five Thirty Eight. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  4. ↑ Solis, Marie (15 June 2016). "One Statistic Shows How the Orlando Shooting Has Swayed Public Opinion on Gun Control". Mic. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  5. ↑ Agiesta, Jennifer; LoBianco, Tom (20 June 2016). "Poll: Gun control support spikes after shooting". CNN. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
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