Americans are deeply divided on many issues these days. But a recent poll conducted by Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee, WI, revealed at least one area of broad agreement: A supermajority in the U.S. supports a right to carry firearms in public for self-defense. The poll questioned 1,005 adults nationwide from July 24 to Aug. 1, 2024, and has a margin of error of +/- 4 percentage points.
Participants were queried on a range of opinions about U.S. institutions and the Supreme Court in particular. One question asked: “In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled that, subject to some restrictions, the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to carry a handgun for self-defense outside the home. How much do you favor or oppose this decision?”
Forty percent of respondents “strongly favor[ed]” this decision, with another 29% “somewhat favor[ing]” it. In contrast, only 39% opposed the decision, with just 14% “strongly” opposed. These results showed an increase in support for the decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen since the last time Marquette University Law School asked the question during November 2022. At that time, 64% were strongly or somewhat in favor.
In contrast to the overwhelming support for the Second Amendment right to carry, no branch of the government, nor the “national news media,” managed to generate “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence among a majority of respondents. For the presidency, it was 32%. For the Supreme Court, it was 27%. For Congress, it was 13%. And for the media, it was a dismal 12%.
Support for Bruen was the second highest of all the 10 Supreme Court decisions on which the respondents were polled. The highest support, at 77%, went to the case affirming that prohibiting firearm possession by persons subject to a domestic violence restraining order did not offend the Second Amendment. This indicates that while Americans strongly support the rights protected by the Second Amendment, they also view those rights as pertaining to peaceable, law-abiding persons.
With the presidential election season well underway, the two major parties have been sparring over whose candidates represent the mainstream versus those with fringe views. When it comes to the right to bear arms, it is the Republican ticket of Donald Trump and JD Vance who clearly reflect the nation’s prevailing opinion that law-abiding Americans have a right to carry guns for self-protection as they go about their daily business.
The official X (formerly Twitter) account of Kamala HQ, on the other hand, continues to host a video where vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz expresses his opposition to “reciprocal carry among states,” meaning he supports the criminal prosecution of otherwise lawful carriers for crossing state lines. As for presidential aspirant Kamala Harris, we’ve already explained that she is on record for the proposition that the Second Amendment doesn’t even protect any individual right to own guns, much less carry them in public.
Americans should not make the mistake, however, of thinking that the popularity of the Second Amendment will protect it from those, like Harris and Walz, who are dedicated to its destruction. The Democrat party elites, and those who fund them, have made their intentions clear. If there is safety in numbers, it can only be secured at the ballot box by voting pro-freedom candidates into office.
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