Party Affiliation Dictates Responses to Orlando

Two competing narratives have emerged in the wake of the terrorist shooting massacre at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida: President Obama and most Democratic leaders say it highlights the need for increased gun control, while most prominent Republicans say it represents the growing threat of domestic Islamic terrorism. Voters are divided along similar partisan lines when it comes to how best to prevent such attacks in the future.

When given a choice, 36% of Likely U.S. Voters believe increased monitoring of individual Muslims with possible ties to terrorism will do the most to reduce the number of mass murders like the one in Orlando, but nearly as many (34%) think stricter gun control laws would be more effective. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that just 16% think better action to treat mental health issues would do the most in reducing massacres like Orlando, while 12% prefer something else not listed in the question. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

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The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on June 16 and 19, 2016 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.