7/29/2019 Polling on Public Preferences on Gun Laws Feb2013

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Email: james@susquehannapolling.com

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James Lee, President

TO: General Media Distribution/All Interested Parties

FROM: Jim Lee, President

RE: (Maryland) Statewide Poll Highlights

DATE: February 6, 2013

Following are three general conclusions summarizing key findings from the statewide telephone poll

conducted January 30th

-February 2nd

with 700 registered (likely) voters in Maryland. Top line survey results

are included, as well as a detailed description of the survey methodology (following the top line results).

I. Voters Reaffirm Strong Support for Fundamental Rights of Self-Protection

Voters show nearly unanimous support for reaffirming their constitutional rights to both protect and defend

themselves with the use of firearms. They similarly reject the notion that government should have the final

say when it comes to decisions about one’s personal choice of firearms. For instance:

  By a margin of 96-3, voters believe they have the right to protect themselves and their families from a

criminal act. Moreover, 83% believe they have a right to use a firearm to protect themselves and theirloved ones. This shows broad-based support exists across all demographic groups regardless of things

like political party affiliation, gender, racial background or other socio-economic factors.

  By a 50-39 margin, voters reject the notion that “one’s choice of firearms for personal self -defense

should be limited only to those the government allows for hunting .” This suggests voters place a

premium on maximizing personal freedoms when it comes to the choice of firearms, and suggests

voters will be adverse to policies that try to impose arbitrary limitations on the choice of firearms.

7/29/2019 Polling on Public Preferences on Gun Laws Feb2013

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II. Voters Most Prefer Stiffer Penalties and Mental Health Screenings to Curb Gun Violence

The poll shows most voters want state lawmakers in Annapolis to focus on existing criminals and solutions to

identify and treat those with dangerous mental health issues. This includes strong support for things like

increasing mandatory prisons sentences for repeat (criminal) offenders, better background screens to stop

those with mental health issues from the lawful possession of firearms, as well as the placement of armed

officers in public schools. However, they simultaneously reject a ban on semi-automatic rifles as a more

effective deterrent to stopping gun violence. For instance:

  By an overwhelming margin of 62% to 20% (or better than 3:1), voters say strengthening laws to keep

firearms out of the hands of the mentally ill would be more effective at preventing future mass

murders than prohibiting law-abiding citizens from owning semi-automatic rifles.

  By an 88-6 margin, voters favor requiring convicted repeat criminal offenders (who use guns in the

commission of a crime) to serve full prison sentences when told that most criminals who use guns

have prior criminal records.

  By a 55-37 margin, voters support placing full time, armed security officers in public schools as a way to

protect children from gun violence.

III. Voters Oppose Sanctions that Aim to Punish Citizens for Technical Violations

By a margin of 61% to 20% (or 3:1), voters disagree that law-abiding citizens should face the prospect of 

lengthy prison sentences, the loss of employment or even a lifetime ban on the right to own firearms if found

to be in violation of technical violations of the licensing requirements of a new gun law. This suggests voters

share the concern that arbitrary, “get-tough” sanctions in the proposed gun licensing measure will invariably

punish law-abiding citizens for even the most benign of infractions.

Methodology: This poll was conducted by Susquehanna Polling and Research of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on

behalf of Maryland Shall Issue. Completed interviews were conducted January 30 – February 2, 2013 with 700

registered voters who have prior vote history in G10, G08 and/or G06, as well as new registered voters since

November 2010. Interviews are randomly selected and conducted via live telephone agents using the

professionally-trained survey research staff from our main telephone call center in Harrisburg; the universe

includes a sample telephone frame of both land line and cellular telephones. Interviews are closely monitored

to ensure a representative sample of Maryland’s electorate is achieved based on party, geography, gender,

age and other demographics; results are sometimes statistically weighted.

The margin of error for a sample size of 700 is +/-3.7% at the 95% confidence level.

© Susquehanna Polling and Research is a privately-owned, survey research and polling firm and conducts public opinion polling on

behalf of political candidates for public office, media outlets as well as numerous corporate clients mainly in Pennsylvania, Delaware

New York, New Jersey, Maryland and Florida. SP&R’s polling and analysis has been cited in numerous national news broadcast

programs including Fox News, MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Mathews, the Bill Maher Show, the Wall Street Journal, the New York

Times, USA Today and others. Susquehanna Polling and Research also does polling under the name Voter Survey Service (VSS).