Gallup Finds U.S. Death Penalty Support at 49%, Lowest in More Than 50 Years
Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Nov 10
Gallup Finds U.S. Death Penalty Support at 49%, Lowest in More Than 50 Years
3 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Nov 10
Summary
49% of U.S. adults now favor the death penalty for convicted murderers, Gallup said Tuesday, the first time support has fallen below 50% since 1971.
The survey was conducted in early October, weeks after Tennessee’s botched execution of Christa Pike, who survived a full lethal-injection protocol after receiving two doses of pentobarbital.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee denied clemency for Pike but then paused executions through year-end and ordered an investigation into the failed execution.
28% of Democrats and 39% of younger Americans backed capital punishment, while Republican support, though still higher at 73%, also fell to one of Gallup’s lowest readings for conservatives.
23 states and Washington, D.C., have abolished the death penalty, but it remains legal in 27 states and federally; seven states have carried out executions this year.