A new NPR/Ipsos survey has found that the overwhelming majority of gun owners support universal background checks and raising the minimum age to purchase guns to 21.
However, most gun owners don’t want an AR-15-style semiautomatic weapons ban. They also doubt that new gun-control measures will do anything to stop mass shootings. Republican gun owners especially believe that passing new gun control laws would be a slippery slope towards taking away all guns.
Chris Jackson, senior vice president at Ipsos, stated that while most gun owners support moderate gun control measures such as background checks and increased age requirements, they distrust government, indicating the obstacles that exist for more gun-control actions.
This survey included 1,022 adults who had at least one firearm. It was done between June 15 and 21, just before the shooting in Highland Park, Chicago, but after the attacks in Buffalo, N.Y. and Uvalde in Texas. The margin of error is +/- 3.3 percentage point. There were 445 Republicans, 389 independents, and 183 Democrats who were interviewed. Five people declined to answer.
Over 8 out of 10 gun owners voted for universal background checks on all gun sales, private or public. This is similar to the nearly 9 in 10 Americans who said so in other surveys.
Approximately two-thirds of the population support raising the minimum age for purchasing an assault-style weapon from 21 to 21 (72%), raising any type of gun purchase age to 21 (67%), and red flag laws (65%).
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Christopher Montes, a poll respondent from Connecticut, stated that he is a gun owner himself, and that background checks, red-flag laws, and raising the age are all things that should be done.
Montes, who is self-declared independent said that there are too many guns in the wrong hands.
Recent legislation increased background checks for those aged 18-21 who are looking to buy a gun. It also offered incentives to states to pass red flag laws. The “boyfriend loophole” was eliminated, which expanded on a law that prohibited spouses convicted in domestic abuse from owning guns.
Before signing the legislation, President Biden stated that “While this bill does not do everything I want”, but it does include actions that I have long called for and are going to save people’s lives.
Biden also wanted to see a ban on semi-automatic AR-15-style weapons. These are the type used in mass shootings and can fire many rounds very quickly.
Gun owners are less supportive of an assault-style weapons ban than other gun-control measures. 55% were opposed to such a ban. The party split was sharp with 72% of Republican gun owners opposed and a slim majority (53%) of independents against, while 84% of Democratic gun owner were in favor.
Surveys, including those conducted by NPR, also found overwhelming support for the measure, even when non-gun owners were included. Since the mid-1990s, there was a ban of such weapons for ten years. Mass shootings tripled after the ban expired.
Lizzie, a poll participant and a self-described conservative 45-year-old who lives in West Texas, said that she supports an assault-style weapons ban because “I do support that” She did not want her last name to be used.
She stated that she is fed up with the constant stream of mass shootings at grocery stores, elementary schools, and Fourth of July parades.
She said, “We don’t have to lose kids like that.” They should be able to grow up and become the people they desire and achieve their goals. They are too young to be able to die that way.
Fred, a 73-year-old Republican gun owner from Bakersfield, Calif., was happy to agree.
He said, “Get rid AR-15s, get rid all that stuff, and do better background screenings.” It’s designed for war. It’s not designed to be hunted with. They are not allowed to be owned by regular people. This is part of the problem.
Others disagree.
Montes, an independent Connecticut gun owner, said that he is not against banning them all. He supports gun-control measures. “If they are going to ban ARs again, that doesn’t make sense. Other high-powered guns with a high capacity and high power are available that look nothing like ARs. You won’t ban them.
Amber, a Republican Pennsylvania police officer, views any AR-style bans as unnecessary and unconstitutional.
“I don’t believe in banning them, because I believe everyone should be able to bear arms, regardless of whether they are legally owned in the United States. “I don’t believe we should deny Americans who legally own guns the right to have guns.
Although technically legal at the federal level, weapons like machine guns, rocket launchers, and other “destructive” devices are highly regulated and subject to strict background checks.
One in five gun owners own AR-15-style semi-automatic rifles. This includes a quarter of Republicans. When asked whether “people like myself” should own such weapons, 45% said no and 35% said yes. However, there was a significant partisan divide. Three quarters of Democrats said yes, while only half of independents and one third of Republicans said no.
These numbers show the sharp partisan divides that arise when it comes to higher-powered guns aEUR” as well as the difficulty of obtaining broad support to limit them.
Most respondents own pistols (73%), followed closely by rifles (57%) and shotguns (56%). 70% of gun owners say they have more than one gun, with 25% saying they have six or more.
Many people stated that they have guns for protection (79%), to protect their family (78%) or because they shoot for fun (54%).
Only 46% said that it was because they are exercising their constitutional rights. However, there was a partisan split with 6/10 Republicans saying this, compared to 17% of Democrats. A third of Democrats said they owned a gun for sports (34%).
Although gun owners may be supportive of some gun-control measures, there is clearly distrust of government among Republicans who account for the majority of gun owners in this survey.
Only 25% of gun owners said that they trust the federal government to protect their interests. A lower 16% of gun owners said the same about news media.
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A small majority of Americans believe that passing new gun control laws would lead to the end of all guns. About three-quarters of Republicans believed so, while about half of the independents agreed.
Sixty-five percent of Republican gun owners stated that the government wants all guns taken away, while 55% said that passing new gun control laws would violate their Second Amendment rights.
The National Rifle Association does not have the same influence with gun owners as Washington’s might suggest. Gun owners are split on the gun lobbying group. 53% say they don’t trust the NRA, while 53% say they do.
There is a huge partisan divide, with three quarters of Republicans saying that they trust the NRA, compared to just one third of independents and only 12% of Democrats.
Over the last two years, the NRA has faced its fair share of problems. These include internal strife and a lawsuit alleging self-dealing. Despite these problems, the NRA seems to dominate the response to mass shootings from ex-President Trump to congressional Republicans.
61% of Americans believe that passing new gun laws will not stop mass shootings. This includes almost 8 out 10 Republicans and 56% who are independents.
It’s not surprising that most gun owners believe it’s more important than to control gun violence (56%) but there’s a major partisan split. Eight in 10 Republicans think it’s important to protect guns rights while nearly nine in 10 Democrats own guns say controlling gun violence should be the priority.
They are concerned about inflation, which is a concern for many Americans. Sixty percent of respondents said so. Third was political extremism and Polarization (33%), followed closely by government budget, debt (27%), crime and gun violence (26%), and climate change (26%).
