A stunning new Fox News poll revealed that 77 percent of respondents favor a 30-day waiting period on gun purchases, and 80 percent believe mental health checks should be required of all gun buyers.
Polling data may be examined here.
The Fox poll also shows that 84 percent of Democrats favor banning so-called “assault weapons,” while only 27 percent support the notion of private citizens carrying guns for personal protection. On the other side of the political chasm, 61 percent of Republicans support carrying guns for self-defense, and only 36 percent support banning semi-auto rifles, routinely mislabeled as “assault weapons” or “weapons of war.”
The survey was conducted April 21-24 by Beacon Research and Shaw & Company. Interviews were conducted among 1,004 registered voters selected randomly. The poll has a sampling error of =/- 3 percentage points.
Released just days after Democrat Gov. Jay Inslee signed legislation banning the future sale, import or manufacture of so-called “assault weapons” in Washington state, the Fox News survey also shows 81 percent of respondents support raising the minimum age for purchasing guns from 18 to 21. An equal percentage wants improved enforcement of existing gun laws, and 87 percent support requiring background checks for all gun buyers.
Overall, 61 percent favor a ban on “assault weapons” and semi-automatic weapons.
When Inslee signed the legislation, it became law immediately. The Second Amendment Foundation and its partners filed a federal lawsuit challenging the gun ban while Inslee was still signing the bill. Likewise, the National Shooting Sports Foundation and its partners filed a federal challenge, supported by the National Rifle Association.
In both of those actions, Attorney General Bob Ferguson is the primary defendant.
However, a third group has filed a state-level lawsuit against the gun ban, and taken the unusual step of also naming Gov. Inslee as a defendant in his official capacity, because he is the “supreme executive power” in the state.
This lawsuit was filed in Grant County Superior Court by the Silent Majority Foundation, Millard Sales LLC and several private citizens. They are seeking declaratory and injunctive relief.
Conducted April 21-24, 2023, under the joint direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News Poll includes interviews with 1,004 registered voters nationwide who were randomly selected from a national voter file and spoke with live interviewers on both landlines and cellphones. The total sample has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
