These are the topline results of a YouGov/Huffington Post survey of 1000 US adults interviewed June 30-July 2, 2015 on death penalty. The margin of error is 4.0%.
Click here to see full tables and demographic crossbreaks
Do you favor or oppose the death penalty for people convicted of murder?
Strongly favor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36%
Somewhat favor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25%
Somewhat oppose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15%
Strongly oppose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12%
Which of the following do you think should be the MAIN goal of the death penalty?
Asked of those who favor the death penalty
To punish the person being executed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18%
To make sure the person being executed never breaks the law again . . . . 14%
To deter other people from breaking the law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20%
To give closure to victims’ families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9%
To ensure justice is served . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33%
Something else . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3%
Which of the following comes closest to your opinion about execution methods that should be allowed?
Asked of those who favor the death penalty
They should be as quick and painless as possible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51%
Being quick and painless should not be a priority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8%
Do you think a state’s use of the death penalty could be considered "cruel and unusual punishment"?
It always is . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13%
It could be, depending on the method of execution used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42%
It never is . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11%
The Supreme Court recently ruled that Oklahoma may continue to use a controversial lethal injection drug that could make some executions severely painful. Do you approve or disapprove of this decision?
Strongly approve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26%
Somewhat approve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21%
Somewhat disapprove . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16%
Strongly disapprove . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20%
Not sure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17%
