A study by Pew Research Center found a majority of Americans believe it’s more important to protect gun rights than to institute more gun-control laws. Results of the survey show 52 percent of Americans believe it’s more important to protect gun rights, while 46 percent said it’s more important to control gun ownership.
The study also found that how you answered that question largely depended on who you planned to vote for in the upcoming presidential election. Among Donald Trump voters, 90 percent favored protecting gun rights, while only 19 percent of Hillary Clinton supporters felt the same. This nearly 70-point difference between Democratic supporters and Republican supporters on this issue is the largest in more than a decade—in May 2000, the gap was only 19 percent.
A majority of Americans—58 percent—also believed gun ownership protects safety rather than increasing risk, although sharp party divides could be seen here, too.
