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Gallup: 85% consider gun control in choosing who to vote for

By Allen Cone
Steven King, owner of Metro Shooting Supplies, shows off a popular handgun. A Gallup Poll shows most registered voters consider gun control when deciding who to vote for. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI
Steven King, owner of Metro Shooting Supplies, shows off a popular handgun. A Gallup Poll shows most registered voters consider gun control when deciding who to vote for. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo

Oct. 23 (UPI) -- More than 85 percent of U.S. registered voters factor gun control into deciding who to support for major offices, according to a Gallup poll.

In the poll, 24 percent said say they would vote only for a candidate who shares their views on gun control -- compared with 26 percent in 2015, the last time the question was asked. In 2000, 11 percent said they'd vote for candidates based on this single issue.

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In the latest poll, 61 percent responded it is one of many factors in choosing a candidate, an increase from 54 percent two years ago.

Those saying gun control is not a voting issue dropped to a new low of 12 percent.

Gallup's annual crime survey of 890 adults was conducted Oct. 5-11 after the Oct. 1 shooting that killed 58 in Las Vegas.

According to Gallup, 43 percent of Republican registered voters own guns and 16 percent of Democratics are firearm owners.

Among Republicans and independents, 23 percent in each demographic said they would only vote for candidates who share their views and 62 percent said it is one of many factors. For Democrats, 25 percent said they'd only vote for a candidate who shared their views and 60 percent said it would be among many factors.

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In the survey, 30 percent of gun owners say they will vote only for a candidate who shares their views on gun control as opposed to 20 percent of gun non-owners.

"Gun owners are often portrayed as devoted, single-issue voters," Gallup's R.J. Reinhart said. "However, the current data show gun-owning voters have only a 10-point edge over gun non-owners in their willingness to vote exclusively for a candidate who shares their views."

The survey has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.

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