Poll Results: Gun Control

September 20, 2013, 3:15 PM GMT+0

These are the topline results of a YouGov/Huffington Post survey of 1000 US adults interviewed September 17 - 18, 2013 on gun control. The results show that many Americans want stricter gun laws but also don't think that stricter laws would help prevent another massacre. The margin of error is 4.2%.

Click here to see full tables and demographic crossbreaks

Do you think gun control laws should be made more or less strict than they are now?
More strict . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48%
No change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29%
Less strict . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7%

Do you think that stricter gun laws would help prevent future mass shootings from occurring, or would they not make any difference?
It would help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40%
It wouldn’t make a difference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8%

Which of the following would you say is most likely to prevent mass shootings from occurring in the United States?
Stricter gun control laws and enforcement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44%
Allowing more private citizens to carry guns for protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18%

Which of the following would you say is most likely to prevent mass shootings from occurring in the United States?
Stricter gun control laws and enforcement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29%
Better mental health care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14%

Do you think the days after mass shooting incidents are the right time or the wrong time to have a national discussion about gun laws?
It’s the right time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45%
It’s the wrong time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14%

How much have you heard about the recent shooting at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C.?
Heard a lot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59%
Heard a little . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35%
Heard nothing at all . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6%