New Research Shows Oregon Gun Owners Support Closing Loopholes in the Background Check System
January 29, 2015 – A recent survey of registered Oregon voters conducted on behalf of Americans for Responsible Solutions, the gun violence prevention and responsible gun ownership advocacy organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, retired Navy combat veteran and astronaut Captain Mark Kelly, finds that a broad majority of Oregonians – including gun owners – support expanded background checks for gun sales.
Among the survey’s findings:
- 87 percent of Oregon voters support expanded background checks on gun sales, with 70 percent saying they strongly support them;
- 83 percent of Oregon gun owners support expanded background checks on gun sales; and,
- 73 percent of voters say they don’t believe laws like expanded background checks threaten their Second Amendment rights.
A memo on the new research can be found here.
The research also found that 69 percent of Oregon voters agree that modest changes to gun laws might not prevent every criminal from getting a gun, but they will prevent many, and that is worth it.
Under current Oregon law, individuals must pass a background check before they can buy a gun from a licensed firearm dealer and at gun shows. While individuals can request a state background check before selling a gun to another person, Oregon does not require private sellers to conduct a background check when transferring a gun to another person.
“Oregonians want commonsense gun laws that make our communities safer. This new research is yet another sign of just how strongly voters support closing the loophole that allows criminals and the dangerously mentally ill in Oregon to get guns over the internet,” said Peter Ambler, Founder, 501(c)(4) Director at Americans for Responsible Solutions. “And once again, we see that huge majorities of gun owners also believe in sensible solutions to gun violence. As Oregon’s elected leaders debate how to make their communities safer, let’s hope they keep in mind the strong, broad support among their constituents for expanded background checks.”
The survey was conducted by Benenson Strategy Group and surveyed 1,000 registered Oregon voters who said they are likely to vote in the 2016 presidential election. The survey, which included an oversample of households with gun owners, was conducted by live professional interviewers between January 12-15, 2015. The margin of error is +/- 3.02 percentage points.