Poll data about views of gun control and specific gun-control measures are mixed, and responses vary depending how questions are asked. But statements about protecting gun rights generally elicit at least as much support from younger Americans as from older ones.

Gallup regularly asks, for example, whether “laws covering the sale of firearms should be made more strict, less strict, or kept as they are now.” Over the past two years, about 49?percent of American adults under 35 have said they support “more strict” gun laws, compared with 56 percent of those 55 and older.

Two other recent surveys, from the Pew Research Center and The Post/ABC News, also asked about the relative importance of protecting gun rights versus other objectives, such as controlling gun ownership or reducing gun violence. Both found that about half of Americans young and old believe gun rights should take priority.

This is a bit puzzling, given that younger Americans are less Republican in their political leanings than older people are and are also less likely to own a gun — two factors that are usually strong predictors of opposition to gun restrictions. These survey data suggest, then, that younger people might be especially predisposed to oppose gun-control measures, after controlling for these variables.