Support for stricter gun laws hits lowest point since 2014 in Gallup poll

Support for gun control has hit its lowest rating since 2014 in a Gallup poll, with just 52 percent of Americans saying they support stricter gun control measures, according to the new survey.

Gallup said the decline was largely attributable to falling support from Republicans.

GOP support for more gun control fell by 14 percentage points to 22 percent, which is the lowest percentage on the question on record for Republicans, reports Gallup. 

Gallup’s new poll results show that 35 percent of American adults believe that current firearm laws should be kept as is and that 11 percent of Americans prefer less strict gun control measures. 

A record of 78 percent of Americans favored stricter gun control legislation in 1990, when Gallup began conducting polls on gun control laws while the nation’s crime was at a high point.

However, as recently as three years ago, support for gun control was at 67 percent, which Gallup records as the highest rate of support since 1993. These high numbers came following the Parkland, Fla., school shooting.

Support among independents for gun control also fell by 15 percent. Forty-five percent of independents favor stricter gun laws, 41 percent want laws to stay the same and 12 percent back less restrictive laws on firearms. 

Among Democrats, support for gun control rose to 91 percent.

The majority of Republicans, 56 percent, want to keep firearm restrictions as they are, while 24 percent back less strict measures and 20 percent support stricter measures.