Voter Poll Data Show Broad Support For Stronger Gun Laws In Obama Administration

Nov 19, 2008

Washington, DC - Post-election polling of people who voted in this last election shows broad support across the country for strengthening background checks and passing other common sense gun laws. 

In polling of 1,083 voters conducted between November 5 and 9 by Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates for the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the results showed that “2008 Presidential election voters of every type and description strongly support common sense gun laws and would like to see the Obama administration take action on these issues soon,” according to Rob Green, who headed the gun issue polling effort for the Washington D.C.-based firm.  “Support for sensible changes in gun laws is strong not only among those who voted for [President-Elect] Obama; certain common sense restrictions are also supported by the vast majority of McCain voters.”
  
Penn, Schoen & Berland officials believe the numbers signify a cultural shift since the Supreme Court’s June decision upholding a right under the Second Amendment of the Constitution for Americans to have a handgun for self-defense.

“It is no longer plausible for opponents of gun legislation to assert that gun laws will somehow lead to a total gun ban.   The right to own a gun is now recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court, but so is the principle that reasonable restrictions are permissible,” Green wrote of the findings. “Perhaps the most compelling purely political story in this data is that the National Rifle Association is losing their old power to turn elections.  A 79 percent majority of voters say that America’s most famous interest group was not an important factor in deciding the election; fully 74 percent of gun owners agree and say the NRA wasn’t a factor… We suspect it is because it’s a post-Heller world.”

The polling results can be found at www.bradycampaign.org/xshare/pdf/memo-11-18-08.pdf.  Among the findings:

• More than three-quarters said they would support reasonable gun restrictions. Fully 83 percent of all voters favor criminal background checks for all gun sales, including 83 percent of moderates and 84 percent of McCain voters. 

• There is extensive support for a wide variety of gun restrictions, including criminal background checks, registration, assault weapon bans, and a five-day waiting period for handgun sales.  Even though these are initiatives that the National Rifle Association opposes, a majority of gun owners still support almost all gun laws tested in the poll.  The only exception is when it comes to limiting the number of guns that can be bought at one time, where only 42% of gun owners say they could support the measure.  But support remains constant for all other groups, including people who voted for John McCain.

• Voters also say that they want to get things done quickly during the upcoming Obama Presidency.  More than two-thirds said that the gun laws they support should be adopted during the first year of the next administration.  This is true for McCain voters and gun owners too. 

“We’re very pleased to see confirmation that the American people are rejecting divisive approaches to gun issues and are strongly supporting efforts to make it harder for dangerous people to get dangerous weapons,” said Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign.  “With the strong support of the American people, we are hopeful that our elected officials will pass laws to make our communities safer for us and our  families.”

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As the nation's largest, non-partisan, grassroots organization leading the fight to prevent gun violence, the Brady Campaign, with its dedicated network of Million Mom March Chapters, works to enact and enforce sensible gun laws, regulations and public policies. The Brady Campaign is devoted to creating an America free from gun violence, where all Americans are safe at home, at school, at work, and in our communities.

For continuing insight and comment on the gun issue, read Paul Helmke's blog at www.bradycampaign.org/blog/. Visit the Brady Campaign website at www.bradycampaign.org.