THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, August 26, 1996 TAG: 9608260058
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A2 EDITION: FINAL
DATELINE: NEW YORK LENGTH: 31 lines
Four in 10 adults live in households with guns, and those homes have an average of two firearms each, a national poll says.
Louis Harris and Associates said its survey being released Monday indicates a leveling-off of gun ownership after a decline during the 1980s. In the poll, 25 percent said they had a pistol, 27 percent a shotgun and 29 percent a rifle.
Some households have more than one type of gun. The total with at least one gun of any type was 40 percent.
The polling company said it found the share of gun-owning households lowest among the very poor, at 17 percent, compared with 54 percent in families that earn $25,000 to $35,000.
Some other breakdowns:
By density. Rural areas, 62 percent. Small towns, 58 percent. Suburbs, 40 percent. Cities, 25 percent.
By region. South, 46 percent. Midwest, 45 percent. West, 39 percent. East, 29 percent.
By race. Whites, 45 percent. Hispanics, 37 percent. Blacks, 17 percent.
By political leaning. Conservatives, 52 percent. Moderates, 36 percent. Liberals, 30 percent.
The Harris Poll interviewed 1,004 adults by phone July 15-21. Results have a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
KEYWORDS: POLL SURVEY GUNS by CNB