Six in 10 Americans believe having a gun in the house makes it a safer place to be, a percentage that has nearly doubled since 2000, according to a new Gallup poll.
The number was 35 percent, 14 years ago. It went up to 42 percent in 2004 and 47 percent in 2006, before billowing to 63 percent in 2014, according to the poll. The percentage who believe guns in homes make them more dangerous has also been on a decrease since 2000, when it was 51 percent; it now stands at 30 percent.
Republicans (81 percent) are about twice as likely as Democrats (41 percent) to believe having a gun improves home safety — and about half of Democrats think a gun makes it more dangerous, while only 15 percent of Republicans think this.
Gun ownership at home has consistently fluctuated over the years — ranging from a low of 34 percent in 1999 to a high of 51 percent in 1993, but has held steady around 40 percent for the last decade.
Forty-two percent of Americans report having a gun in their home this year, according to the Gallup poll, mostly in the South (51 percent) and the Midwest (44 percent).
The split of gun ownership among genders: men are as likely to own a gun (47 percent) as they are to not (48 percent). However, more women do not have a gun (59 percent) than do (38 percent).
In May 2013, National Riffle Association Vice President Wayne LaPierre revealed membership was more than 5 million. The NRA is a national nonprofit with the outward goal of protecting, defending and advancing the Second Amendment, or the right to bear arms.
Violent crime rates have fallen significantly from 1993 to 2012, and while it may be a rough assertion to make, many believe this to be because of increased gun sales and gun ownership, according to Gallup.
The random sample of 1,017 U.S. adults was done by telephone interview from Oct. 12-15. The margin of sampling error was plus or minus four percentage points.
