Americans' Dissatisfaction With Gun Laws Spikes to 38%
Source: Gallup
January 14, 2013
Close to four in 10 say gun laws should be stricter, up from 25% in 2012
by Lydia Saad
PRINCETON, NJ -- In the aftermath of the Newtown, Conn., school shootings, and as Vice President Joe Biden leads a federal task force that will recommend ways to curb gun violence in the U.S., 38% of Americans are dissatisfied with the nation's gun laws and want them strengthened. This is up from 25% who held this set of views a year ago, and is the highest since 2001. Still, more Americans are either satisfied with current gun laws, 43%, or think they should be loosened, 5%.
These findings are based on two questions in Gallup's annual Mood of the Nation survey, conducted Jan. 7-10. The first asks respondents if they are satisfied or dissatisfied with the nation's laws or policies on guns. Those saying they are dissatisfied are asked a follow-up question to determine whether they think the laws should be made more strict, made less strict, or kept as they are. As a result, the 38% who are dissatisfied and want stricter gun laws indicates not only a preference for stricter gun laws but a certain amount of intensity of feeling on the subject.
The uptick in support for strengthening gun laws seen on this question is consistent with a December Gallup poll conducted after the Newtown shootings that found a similar shift over the past year, using a question that does not measure intensity of opinion. That question, Gallup's long-term-trend measure of gun law preferences, found 58% of all Americans saying gun laws should be stricter, up sharply from 43% in 2011.
Men, Nonwhites, and Democrats Shift Toward Strengthening Gun Laws
Most subgroups are at least slightly more likely this year than last year to say they are dissatisfied with gun laws and want them to be stricter. However, this shift is more pronounced in some groups than others, namely men, nonwhites, and Democrats. Additionally, adults younger than 35 and older than 54 are more likely than middle-aged adults to express an increased desire for stricter gun laws.
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Read more: http://www.gallup.com/poll/159824/americans-dissatisfaction-gun-laws-spikes.aspx
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Nevertheless, Americans' views on the sale of assault rifles are unchanged. The slight majority, 51%, remain opposed to making it illegal to manufacture, sell, or possess semi-automatic guns known as assault rifles.
Notably, the 44% in favor of assault rifle bans in response to this trend question is nearly identical to the 42% Gallup found favoring assault and semi-automatic bans in a Dec. 18 poll. In that survey, participants responded to a question asking about possible approaches to preventing mass shootings at schools, similar to the shooting that occurred Dec. 14 in Connecticut.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/159569/americans-stricter-gun-laws-oppose-bans.aspx
