Opinion Today
November 18, 2021
Death Penalty Support Holding at Five-Decade Low
Jeffrey M. Jones, Gallup
Americans' opinions about the death penalty have been relatively stable in recent years after a decline in 2017. The current 54% of U.S. adults who say they favor the death penalty for convicted murderers is essentially unchanged from readings over the past four years and remains lower than any other measurement since March 1972 (50%).
Stricter Gun Laws Less Popular in U.S.
Megan Brenan, Gallup
Americans' support for stricter gun control has fallen five percentage points to 52%, the lowest reading since 2014. At the same time, 35% of U.S. adults think laws covering the sale of firearms should be kept as they are now and 11% favor less strict laws.
Gun Owners Increasingly Cite Crime as Reason for Ownership
Jeffrey M. Jones, Gallup
Sharply more U.S. gun owners today than in the 2000s say they own a gun for protection against crime. Eighty-eight percent of gun owners cite crime protection as a reason they own a gun, compar…
