According to the Pew Research Center’s latest poll, 84% of Americans say gun policy will play a factor in determining who to vote for in the 2024 presidential election.The survey took place just before the Sept. 4 mass shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, which killed four people and injured nine, the deadliest school shooting in the state’s history. It was the 385th mass shooting in the U.S. in 2024, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The shooting prompted responses from the presidential and vice presidential candidates of both major parties, which, in part, reiterated to voters where they stood on the issue.”This is just a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies, and it’s just outrageous that every day in our country, in the United States of America, that parents have to send their children to school, worried about whether or not their child will come home alive,” Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, said at an event in New Hampshire. “We have to end this epidemic of gun violence in our country once and for all.”Focusing less on guns, former President Donald Trump said, “Our hearts are with the victims and loved ones of those affected by the tragic event in Winder, GA,” in a social media post. “These cherished children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster.”Trump’s vice presidential running mate, Sen. JD Vance, expanded on the ticket’s position, delving deeper into how to prevent more mass shootings in America.”What is going to solve this problem? And I really do believe this is — look, I don’t like this. I don’t like to admit this. I don’t like that this is a fact of life,” Vance said during a campaign event in Phoenix. “But if you’re a psycho and you want to make headlines, you realize that our schools are soft targets, and … we’ve got to bolster security so that if a psycho wants to walk through the front door and kill a bunch of children, they’re not able to.”Guns have personally impacted Trump, as he faced two assassination attempts less than 10 weeks apart — first on July 13 at a Butler, Pennsylvania, rally, and then on Sept. 15 at a golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida.Like the Georgia school shooting, those attempts stirred questions about access to guns, particularly assault-style weapons, which were used in all three events. It also sparked discussions about mental health and public safety.The topic of guns is pervasive in American politics. It’s also poignant and partisan. So, let’s examine the contentious issue that could potentially determine the outcome of this year’s election.This is a four-part series, breaking down the data, root causes, solutions and political implications of guns and gun violence in America. This is Part 1.Guns and gun violence, by the numbersBy almost every gun-related metric, the United States stands out among the pack.According to a Small Arms Survey report, about 393 million civilian-held firearms are in the U.S., which is about 46% of the worldwide total. By their estimates, there are 120.5 firearms for every 100 residents.The U.S. is also an outlier for gun violence. In 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, there were 48,204 gun-related deaths in America, according to the CDC. That is 14.2 deaths per 100,000 people. Put another way: That is a gun death every 11 minutes.According to a 2019 report, the U.S. only trailed Brazil in total firearm-related deaths. The U.S.’ gun death rate ranked 22nd in the world, situated between Guyana and Panama and behind mostly South and Central American countries. Its gun death rate was three times higher than France, about four times higher than Canada, about nine times higher than Germany and 45 times higher than the United Kingdom.Looking at homicides, a 2021 report showed that the U.S. had the highest firearm murder rate in the world among higher-income countries with populations of at least 10 million – about three times higher than second-place Saudi Arabia. However, it’s actually suicides that make up a majority of firearm deaths in the U.S. In 2022, there were 27,032 gun-related suicides, which was 56% of all firearm deaths.The U.S. only trailed Greenland for the highest suicide by firearm rate in the world, according to a study that examined data from 1990 to 2019.Guns also impact our population’s most vulnerable at an alarming rate. Firearms are now the leading cause of death for children and adolescents, surpassing motor vehicles in 2020. Again, compared to other higher-income countries with populations above 10 million, the U.S. has the highest percentage of childhood deaths caused by firearms — more than four times higher than Canada, which is second. Lastly, on mass shootings, a recent report found that the U.S. accounted for 76% of all mass shootings in developed countries, defined by the United Nations, between 2000 and 2022. The Rockefeller Institute of Government characterized mass shootings as public incidents involving four or more victim fatalities by firearm.According to the report, the U.S. had 109 mass shootings during that time period. The next closest was France, with six. Zooming into the U.S. gun data, there is a sharp discrepancy between states.Total gun death rates top out at 29.6 per 100,000 in Mississippi, with Louisiana (28.2), New Mexico (27.3), Alabama (25.5) and Missouri (24.2) rounding out the top five, as shown by CDC data.On the other end, gun death rates shrink down to as low as Rhode Island’s 3.1. Following behind are Massachusetts (3.7), Hawaii (4.5), New Jersey (5) and New York (5.3). Notably, the leading total gun death rate states rank high in gun ownership rates. Mississippi and Alabama are in the top 10, Louisiana is in the top 15, and Missouri is in the top 20. At the same time, the states with the lowest gun ownership rates are Massachusetts (14.7%), New Jersey (14.7%), Rhode Island (14.8%), Hawaii (14.9%) and New York (19.9%). These states also have the lowest gun death rates.Additionally, the states with the highest gun death rates lead the country in total homicide rates: Mississippi (20.7), Louisiana (19.7), Alabama (14.9), New Mexico (14.5) and Missouri (12.8) comprise the top five.That is consistent with the fact that firearms accounted for nearly 80% of all homicides in the U.S., according to the latest CDC data.Moreover, the top three states in gun ownership – Montana (66.3%), Wyoming (66.2%) and Alaska (64.5%) – also have the top three highest suicide rates.Considering these statistics and more, in 2024, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared gun violence a public health crisis.The decision was praised by the scientific community. “Family physicians have long understood, and have seen first hand, the devastating impact firearm violence has on our patients and the communities we serve,” American Academy of Family Physicians President Steven Furr said at the time. Furr’s organization has considered gun violence a public health epidemic for over a decade.It also drew the ire of gun rights advocates.”This is an extension of the Biden Administration’s war on law-abiding gun owners,” Randy Kozuch, president of the National Rifle Association (NRA), said in a statement on social media.Ultimately, the decision signaled a clear approach by the federal government to get to the root of gun violence.”It is now time for us to take this issue out of the realm of politics and put it in the realm of public health, the way we did with smoking more than a half-century ago,” Murthy told the AP.
According to the Pew Research Center’s latest poll, 84% of Americans say gun policy will play a factor in determining who to vote for in the 2024 presidential election.
The survey took place just before the Sept. 4 mass shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, which killed four people and injured nine, the deadliest school shooting in the state’s history. It was the 385th mass shooting in the U.S. in 2024, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
The shooting prompted responses from the presidential and vice presidential candidates of both major parties, which, in part, reiterated to voters where they stood on the issue.
“This is just a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies, and it’s just outrageous that every day in our country, in the United States of America, that parents have to send their children to school, worried about whether or not their child will come home alive,” Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, said at an event in New Hampshire. “We have to end this epidemic of gun violence in our country once and for all.”
Focusing less on guns, former President Donald Trump said, “Our hearts are with the victims and loved ones of those affected by the tragic event in Winder, GA,” in a social media post. “These cherished children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster.”
Trump’s vice presidential running mate, Sen. JD Vance, expanded on the ticket’s position, delving deeper into how to prevent more mass shootings in America.
“What is going to solve this problem? And I really do believe this is — look, I don’t like this. I don’t like to admit this. I don’t like that this is a fact of life,” Vance said during a campaign event in Phoenix. “But if you’re a psycho and you want to make headlines, you realize that our schools are soft targets, and … we’ve got to bolster security so that if a psycho wants to walk through the front door and kill a bunch of children, they’re not able to.”
Guns have personally impacted Trump, as he faced two assassination attempts less than 10 weeks apart — first on July 13 at a Butler, Pennsylvania, rally, and then on Sept. 15 at a golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Like the Georgia school shooting, those attempts stirred questions about access to guns, particularly assault-style weapons, which were used in all three events. It also sparked discussions about mental health and public safety.
The topic of guns is pervasive in American politics. It’s also poignant and partisan.
So, let’s examine the contentious issue that could potentially determine the outcome of this year’s election.
This is a four-part series, breaking down the data, root causes, solutions and political implications of guns and gun violence in America. This is Part 1.
Guns and gun violence, by the numbers
By almost every gun-related metric, the United States stands out among the pack.
According to a Small Arms Survey report, about 393 million civilian-held firearms are in the U.S., which is about 46% of the worldwide total. By their estimates, there are 120.5 firearms for every 100 residents.
The U.S. is also an outlier for gun violence. In 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, there were 48,204 gun-related deaths in America, according to the CDC. That is 14.2 deaths per 100,000 people. Put another way: That is a gun death every 11 minutes.
According to a 2019 report, the U.S. only trailed Brazil in total firearm-related deaths. The U.S.’ gun death rate ranked 22nd in the world, situated between Guyana and Panama and behind mostly South and Central American countries. Its gun death rate was three times higher than France, about four times higher than Canada, about nine times higher than Germany and 45 times higher than the United Kingdom.
Looking at homicides, a 2021 report showed that the U.S. had the highest firearm murder rate in the world among higher-income countries with populations of at least 10 million – about three times higher than second-place Saudi Arabia.
However, it’s actually suicides that make up a majority of firearm deaths in the U.S. In 2022, there were 27,032 gun-related suicides, which was 56% of all firearm deaths.
The U.S. only trailed Greenland for the highest suicide by firearm rate in the world, according to a study that examined data from 1990 to 2019.
Guns also impact our population’s most vulnerable at an alarming rate. Firearms are now the leading cause of death for children and adolescents, surpassing motor vehicles in 2020.
Again, compared to other higher-income countries with populations above 10 million, the U.S. has the highest percentage of childhood deaths caused by firearms — more than four times higher than Canada, which is second.
Lastly, on mass shootings, a recent report found that the U.S. accounted for 76% of all mass shootings in developed countries, defined by the United Nations, between 2000 and 2022. The Rockefeller Institute of Government characterized mass shootings as public incidents involving four or more victim fatalities by firearm.
According to the report, the U.S. had 109 mass shootings during that time period. The next closest was France, with six.
Zooming into the U.S. gun data, there is a sharp discrepancy between states.
Total gun death rates top out at 29.6 per 100,000 in Mississippi, with Louisiana (28.2), New Mexico (27.3), Alabama (25.5) and Missouri (24.2) rounding out the top five, as shown by CDC data.
On the other end, gun death rates shrink down to as low as Rhode Island’s 3.1. Following behind are Massachusetts (3.7), Hawaii (4.5), New Jersey (5) and New York (5.3).
Notably, the leading total gun death rate states rank high in gun ownership rates. Mississippi and Alabama are in the top 10, Louisiana is in the top 15, and Missouri is in the top 20.
At the same time, the states with the lowest gun ownership rates are Massachusetts (14.7%), New Jersey (14.7%), Rhode Island (14.8%), Hawaii (14.9%) and New York (19.9%). These states also have the lowest gun death rates.
Additionally, the states with the highest gun death rates lead the country in total homicide rates: Mississippi (20.7), Louisiana (19.7), Alabama (14.9), New Mexico (14.5) and Missouri (12.8) comprise the top five.
That is consistent with the fact that firearms accounted for nearly 80% of all homicides in the U.S., according to the latest CDC data.
Moreover, the top three states in gun ownership – Montana (66.3%), Wyoming (66.2%) and Alaska (64.5%) – also have the top three highest suicide rates.
Considering these statistics and more, in 2024, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared gun violence a public health crisis.
The decision was praised by the scientific community.
“Family physicians have long understood, and have seen first hand, the devastating impact firearm violence has on our patients and the communities we serve,” American Academy of Family Physicians President Steven Furr said at the time. Furr’s organization has considered gun violence a public health epidemic for over a decade.
It also drew the ire of gun rights advocates.
“This is an extension of the Biden Administration’s war on law-abiding gun owners,” Randy Kozuch, president of the National Rifle Association (NRA), said in a statement on social media.
Ultimately, the decision signaled a clear approach by the federal government to get to the root of gun violence.
“It is now time for us to take this issue out of the realm of politics and put it in the realm of public health, the way we did with smoking more than a half-century ago,” Murthy told the AP.
