64 percent of Pa. respondents to a new poll support more gun restrictions

The majority of people gave the opinion before mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton.

• Ed Mahon
  BioRecent Stories

  

  Ed Mahon comes to Spotlight PA from PA Post, where he covered state politics and policy, produced radio stories that were broadcast on public media stations throughout the state and on NPR’s national newscasts, and co-wrote a weekday newsletter. Prior to joining PA Post, Ed worked for six years as an investigative and political reporter for the York Daily Record, part of the USA Today Network. His reporting on failures in Pennsylvania’s system for protecting domestic abuse victims was a finalist in the national 2018 Livingston Awards for Young Journalists in the local reporting category. He was also part of a team whose coverage of the criminal justice system, including the aggressive use of civil asset forfeiture by York County prosecutors, received the 2018 G. Richard Dew Award for Journalistic Service from the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association. Before joining the York Daily Record, Ed covered K-12 education at the Centre Daily Times in State College and worked as a stringer for suburban sections of The Philadelphia Inquirer. He grew up in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.

 Matt Slocum / AP Photo

Demonstrators and students gather during a rally against gun violence on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Monday, June 11, 2018, in Philadelphia.

About 64 percent of registered voters in Pennsylvania support creating more laws that regulate gun ownership, according to the latest survey from Franklin & Marshall College.

The majority of respondents offered that opinion before the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton, since the survey was conducted from July 29 through Aug. 4 by phone and online.

Franklin & Marshall pollsters regularly asks the same question about supporting more laws that regulate gun ownership. In the latest survey, here’s how the results broke down:

• 47 percent strongly favor;
• 17 percent somewhat favor;
• 10 percent somewhat oppose;
• 23 percent strongly oppose;
• and 3 percent don’t know.

Of the respondents, 34 percent of people said they were a gun owner.

The number of people who support more laws that regulate gun ownership is higher than in August 2013 when Franklin & Marshall asked the same question. Six years ago, 51 percent of people favored tougher gun laws.

A majority of PA voters support additional gun control measures @SenBobCasey @GovernorTomWolf https://t.co/QWD7uE3gRX pic.twitter.com/uEQdhtRtop

— F&M Opinion Research (@FandMPoll) August 8, 2019

The poll question doesn’t specifically ask people whether they want more gun laws at the state or federal level.

The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, which supports increased gun restrictions, gives Pennsylvania a “C+” rating.

The state does not:

• require a background check for all rifle and shotgun sales — a regular gun owner could sell one to a friend or neighbor without one, for instance;
• allow courts to temporarily remove a person’s gun rights through extreme risk protection orders;
• prohibit military-style rifles or large-capacity ammunition magazines.

The survey is based on responses from 627 registered voters in Pennsylvania, and the margin of error is 6 percentage points.

A collection of interviews, photos, and music videos, featuring local musicians who have stopped by the WITF performance studio to share a little discussion and sound. Produced by WITF’s Joe Ulrich.

Learn More