(UnitedVoice.com) – For the first time in polling history, a majority of American voters reported having a firearm in their household. Public Opinion Strategies conducted the survey with the Democratic-led polling firm Hart Research for NBC News in November.
Relying on previous polls conducted by NBC News and various partners (like The Wall Street Journal), the report showed that 42% of participants answered affirmatively to the gun question in March 2004 and February 2013. Then, in August 2019, that figure increased to 52%.
The survey also reflected an increase in Democrats reporting that at least one person in their household had a gun, leading to speculation as to the reasoning behind that shift.
New Report Addresses Democrat’s Growing Embrace of Firearms
On December 11, Newsweek published a report detailing the significance of the NBC News poll’s findings regarding Democrats. The number of registered Democratic voters confirming that someone in the household owned a “gun of any kind” shifted dramatically in the last few years, as shown in the list below. Overall, the percentage of Democrats reporting firearms in the home increased by eight points.
- March 2004: 33% of Democrats surveyed reported having a firearm.
- February 2013: 30% replied in the affirmative.
- August 2019: 33%.
- November 2023: 41%.
Newsweek spoke with Florida State criminologist Gary Kleck about the poll’s findings. The noted David J. Bordua professor and emeritus faculty member confirmed that the results were consistent with previous surveys with one distinction.
Kleck stated that previous studies weren’t confined to registered voters — they included the country’s “entire adult population.” He explained that the percentage of households with guns is higher among registered voters. In other words, the earlier figures cited in the NBC News poll would have shown a higher percentage of participants answering the question in the affirmative.
Turning his attention to Democrats, Kleck speculated that the increased number of households having guns in that demographic group could relate to rising crime rates in large cities where liberal voters “claim a larger share of the population.”
Republican Voters Reporting Guns in Their Households on the Rise
The new NBC News poll revealed that the number of Republicans reporting they had at least one gun in the household also increased, as shown in the following list. Overall, the survey reflected a nine-percent increase among GOP voters.
- March 2004: 57%
- February 2013: 55%
- August 2019: 64%
- November 2023: 66%
The number of independents reporting at least one firearm in their household remained relatively static compared to Republicans and Democrats, particularly over the four years.
- March 2004: 41%
- February 2013: 49%
- August 2019: 46%
- November 2023: 45%
Pollsters conducted the survey between November 10 and 14. One thousand registered voters participated in the poll, most using their cell phones. The survey had a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points.
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