By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
A recent Rasmussen survey released just days ago says a slight majority of “likely U.S. voters” (51%) believes the U.S. needs stricter gun control laws, and it further notes, “Democrats are significantly more likely than Republicans or independents to favor more gun control.”
The poll shows that 41 percent of respondents disagree with the call for more restrictions on gun owners.
However, according to Rasmussen, 50 percent of survey respondents think there should be a ban on the purchase of semiautomatic and “assault type weapons,” while 33 percent oppose the idea and 17 percent are not sure.
Rasmussen surveyed 1,044 likely voters Sept. 26 and 29-30 with a margin of sampling error of +/- 3 percentage points and a 95 percent level of confidence.
Perhaps the most unsurprising revelation of this survey is how Democrats are far more supportive of restrictive gun control laws. According to Rasmussen, 77 percent of Democrats believe the country needs tougher gun laws, while only 31 percent of Republicans and 43 percent of Independents think so.
“Similarly,” Rasmussen noted, “while 71% of Democrats think there should be a ban on the purchase of semi-automatic and assault type weapons, only 33% of Republicans and 46% of unaffiliated voters agree.”
And here’s another predictable revelation: Rasmussen pollsters found that 81 percent of those who say they will vote for Kamala Harris next month support a ban on so-called “assault weapons,” but only 24 percent of Donald Trump supporters agree.
“More women voters (54%) than men (47%) support stricter gun control laws and, by a 13-point margin, women voters (57%) are more likely than men (44%) to favor an assault weapons ban,” Rasmussen said. “Forty-nine percent (49%) of whites, 68% of black voters, 47% of Hispanics and 51% of other minorities think the United States needs stricter gun control laws. Hispanics are least likely to favor a ban on the purchase of semi-automatic and assault type weapons.”
Gun control is an issue in this year’s elections, both nationally and at the state level. It is often “hiding in the weeds,” but it is there.
As reported by Rasmussen, “Voters under 40 are more likely than their elders to say America needs stricter gun control laws.
“While 70% of government employees believe there should be a ban on the purchase of semi-automatic and assault type weapons, that belief is shared by less than half of private sector workers (49%) and retirees (46%),” the veteran polling firm revealed.
And there might be an elitist element in all of this. According to Rasmussen, “Breaking down the electorate by income categories, voters earning more than $100,000 are most likely to favor stricter gun control laws.”
