GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- The death penalty--long an issue in American politics--promises to return to the headlines as the scheduled execution of Oklahoma City bombing mastermind Timothy McVeigh approaches. The McVeigh case is taking on added controversy given his desire, and the desire of some families of victims, to have his execution televised. The latest Gallup poll, conducted February 19-21, shows that Americans' support for the death penalty has remained steady over the last year. Sixty-seven percent of the public favors the death penalty for murder, while 25% are against it. The numbers are essentially unchanged compared to three separate readings of the public's view on the death penalty from last year.
Public Opinion of the Death Penalty Over Time
Gallup has been asking the public whether they "are in favor of the
death penalty for a person convicted of murder?" since 1953, and
there have been a number of shifts in the public's opinion over
that time period. Support was initially high in 1953, but
throughout the late 1950s and into the 1970s Americans generally
favored the death penalty, but not by overwhelming margins. The
percentage of Americans in favor of the death penalty ranged from
42% to 54% during this time. At one point, in 1966, more Americans
said they were against the death penalty (47%) than said they were
for it (42%). There was much discussion about the constitutionality
of the death penalty during this time, and no executions took place
in the United States between 1968 and 1977.
When the Supreme Court finally ruled in 1976 that the death penalty in and of itself did not constitute "cruel and unusual punishment," the death penalty was restored in many states. In 1977, Gary Gilmore became the first inmate executed since the suspension of the death penalty in 1968. Perhaps in reaction to the Supreme Court decision, public support for the death penalty began to increase in 1976, when 66% indicated they were in favor of it, the highest level of support since 1953. Americans' support for the death penalty continued to increase over the next two decades, pushing past 70% in 1985 and reaching a high of 80% support in 1994. Since then, support has declined, dropping to the current level of 67%. Even news of the Oklahoma City bombing and the federal government's seeking (and obtaining) the death penalty for McVeigh in 1995 did not reverse the downward trend.
Support for the Death Penalty by Subgroup
Not all groups within the country are equally supportive of the
death penalty. Traditionally, non-whites have been much less
supportive than whites, which is not surprising given the attention
that has been paid to racial disparities in death sentencing.
Roughly 70% of whites favor the death penalty in recent polls,
while less than a majority of non-whites do.
While the racial divide is by far the most significant in regards to the death penalty, others also exist:
- Men more than women tend to support the death penalty, typically by about 10 percentage points.
- Younger Americans--those under 30 years old--are somewhat less likely to favor the death penalty than are older Americans. The latest poll shows support among older Americans around 70%, while support among those under 30 is in the low 60s.
- Republicans are much more likely to favor the death penalty than are Democrats. In the latest poll, 79% of Republicans say they favor the death penalty compared to 52% of Democrats. Forty percent of Democrats, compared to 16% of Republicans, say they oppose the death penalty.
- Similarly, conservatives are more likely to favor the death penalty (76%) than are liberals (58%).
Death Penalty Versus Life Imprisonment
The standard Gallup trend question reviewed above provides a basic
view of the public's support for the death penalty. Some critics
have argued, however, that the public should be presented with
alternatives to the death penalty to get what they consider to be a
more realistic view of support for the death penalty. Thus, Gallup
has also gauged support for the death penalty by giving Americans a
choice between the death penalty and life imprisonment with no
possibility of parole. When asked in this manner, 54% of Americans
favor the death penalty while 42% favor life imprisonment,
according to the latest poll. This question has been asked several
times over the years, and while the level of support for the death
penalty is less compared with the standard question, more Americans
have always said they favored the death penalty to life
imprisonment.
Why Americans Support the Death Penalty
Digging a little deeper, Gallup asked supporters why they favored
the death penalty. The question was asked in an open-ended format,
so respondents provided, in their own words, reasons why they
favored the death penalty.
Why do you favor the death penalty for persons convicted of murder? [Open-ended]
|
Feb 19-21, 2001 |
Feb. 19-21, |
|
|
|
|
|
|
An eye for an eye/They took a life/Fits the crime |
48 |
45 |
|
Save taxpayers money/Cost associated with prison |
20 |
15 |
|
Deterrent for potential crimes/Set an example |
10 |
8 |
|
They deserve it |
6 |
5 |
|
Support/believe in death penalty |
6 |
5 |
|
Depends on the type of crime they commit |
6 |
4 |
|
They will repeat their crime/Keep them from repeating it |
6 |
4 |
|
Biblical reasons |
3 |
3 |
|
Relieves prison overcrowding |
2 |
2 |
|
If there's no doubt the person committed the crime |
2 |
1 |
|
Life sentences don't always mean life in prison |
2 |
1 |
|
Don't believe they can be rehabilitated |
2 |
-- |
|
Serve justice |
1 |
-- |
|
Fair punishment |
1 |
-- |
|
Would help/benefit families of victims |
1 |
1 |
|
Other |
3 |
2 |
|
No opinion |
1 |
1 |
The results show that Americans are most likely to say they support the death penalty because they believe it provides appropriate justice, or even vengeance, for the crime committed. A majority of death penalty supporters give a response touching on these aspects, including 48% who say the punishment "fits the crime," 6% who say "they deserve it," and 1% each who say that it is "fair punishment," "serves justice," or "benefits the families of the victims."
The data appear to show that more pragmatic reasons are much less important motivators of support for the death penalty. Twenty percent of supporters said they believe the death penalty "saves taxpayers money" and 10% think it is a deterrent to committing severe crimes. Despite the relatively small proportion of the general public who mentions these arguments, they are two of the primary ones cited by most death penalty proponents.
Survey Methods
The results below are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of 1,016 adults, 18 years and older, conducted February 19-21, 2001. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum error attributable to sampling and other random effects is plus or minus 3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
Are you in favor of the death penalty for a person convicted of murder?
BASED ON -- 483 -- NATIONAL ADULTS IN FORM A; ±4 PCT. PTS.
|
For |
Against |
No opinion |
|
|
2001 Feb 19-21 |
67 |
25 |
8 |
|
2000 Aug 29-Sep 5 |
67 |
28 |
5 |
|
2000 Jun 23-25 |
66 |
26 |
8 |
|
2000 Feb 14-15 |
66 |
28 |
6 |
|
1999 Feb 8-9 |
71 |
22 |
7 |
|
1995 May 11-14 |
77 |
13 |
10 |
|
1994 Sep 6-7 |
80 |
16 |
4 |
|
1991 Jun 13-16 |
76 |
18 |
6 |
|
1988 Sep 25-Oct 1 |
79 |
16 |
5 |
|
1988 Sep 9-11 |
79 |
16 |
5 |
|
1986 Jan 10-13 |
70 |
22 |
8 |
|
1985 Jan 11-14 |
72 |
20 |
8 |
|
1985 Nov 11-18 |
75 |
17 |
8 |
|
1981 Jan 30-Feb 2 |
66 |
25 |
9 |
|
1978 Mar 3-6 |
62 |
27 |
11 |
|
1976 Apr 9-12 |
66 |
26 |
8 |
|
1972 Nov 10-13 |
57 |
32 |
11 |
|
1972 Mar 3-5 |
50 |
41 |
9 |
|
1971 Oct 29-Nov 2 |
49 |
40 |
11 |
|
1969 Jan 23-28 |
51 |
40 |
9 |
|
1967 Jun 2-7 |
54 |
38 |
8 |
|
1966 May 19-24 |
42 |
47 |
11 |
|
1965 Jan 7-12 |
45 |
43 |
12 |
|
1960 Mar 2-7 |
53 |
36 |
11 |
|
1957 Aug 29-Sep 4 |
47 |
34 |
18 |
|
1956 Mar 29-Apr 3 |
53 |
34 |
13 |
|
1953 Nov 1-5 |
68 |
25 |
7 |
If you could choose between the following two approaches, which do you think is the better penalty for murder -- [ROTATED: the death penalty (or) life imprisonment, with absolutely no possibility of parole]?
|
The death penalty |
Life imprisonment |
No opinion |
|
|
2001 Feb 19-21 |
54 |
42 |
4 |
|
2000 Aug 29-Sep 5 |
49 |
47 |
4 |
What do you think should be the penalty for murder -- the death penalty or life imprisonment with absolutely no possibility of parole?
|
Death |
Life imprisonment |
No |
|
|
2001 Feb 19-21** |
57 |
41 |
3 |
|
2000 Aug 29-Sep 5** |
50 |
47 |
4 |
|
2000 Feb 20-21 |
52 |
37 |
11 |
|
1999 Feb 8-9** |
56 |
38 |
6 |
|
1997 Aug 12-13** |
61 |
29 |
10 |
|
1994 June 22 |
50 |
32 |
18 |
|
1993 Oct 13-18 |
59 |
29 |
12 |
|
1992 Mar 30-Apr 5 |
50 |
37 |
13 |
|
1991 Jun 13-16 |
53 |
35 |
11 |
|
1986 Jan 10-13 |
55 |
35 |
10 |
|
1985 Jan 11-14 |
56 |
34 |
10 |
Note: beginning in August 2000, Gallup began to rotate the order in which the death penalty and life imprisonment options were given to respondents. The longer trend shows the results for polls since that time with the death penalty option presented first, as was originally done.
(*) No opinion category includes true "no opinion" responses as well as volunteered responses including "Other," "Neither," and "Depends."
** Asked of half sample
