Fewer than half of Americans now favor the death penalty for convicted murderers. A Gallup poll released Tuesday, Nov. 10, puts support at 49%, with 45% opposed. Support last fell below a majority in 1971, and the last time it was lower was 1966, when 42% were in favor.

The change from last year's 52% is within the poll's margin of error of plus or minus 4 points. The decline over three decades is much larger. Most earlier readings below a majority came between 1965 and 1971, while legal challenges to state death penalty laws worked through the courts. In 1972 the Supreme Court ruled that every state's law was unconstitutional as written. Support then climbed, peaked at 80% in 1994 and stayed at 60% or higher for 40 years after executions resumed in 1977, before settling in the mid-50s for most of the past decade.

Gallup interviewed 1,200 adults by phone from Oct. 1 to 19. Fieldwork began the day after Tennessee's failed attempt to execute Christa Pike, which led the state's governor to pause executions while the case is investigated.

Where the drop came from

Line chart of Gallup death penalty support from 1936 to 2026, peaking at 80% in 1994 and falling to 49% in 2026
Support for the death penalty for convicted murderers in Gallup polls, 1936 to 2026.Chart: Edit USA, data from Gallup
Group2026 supportComparison
Democrats28%56% in 2000, 75% in 1994
Independents50%Down 18 points since 2000
Republicans73%Usually around 80% since the 1990s
Adults under 3039%61% in 2000

Democrats show the steepest decline, which leaves a 45-point gap between the two parties. Republican support has held steadier, although this year's 73% is among the lowest Gallup has recorded for the group. Adults 50 and older are the only age group where a majority still favors capital punishment.

Executions this year and those still scheduled

The arched entrance sign and white cellblocks of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary under a blue sky
The Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester in 2008.Charles Duggar / Wikimedia Commons.jpg) / CC BY-SA 2.0
Red brick walls and razor wire of the Huntsville Unit prison in Texas beside a state historical marker
The Huntsville Unit in Huntsville, Texas, where the state carries out executions, in 2008.Mark Britain / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0

Thirty-five people have been executed in seven states so far in 2026, according to the Death Penalty Information Center's execution list, last updated Nov. 5.

More dates are set before the year ends. The center's schedule of upcoming executions lists John Rubio in Texas and James Pavatt in Oklahoma on Nov. 12, followed by Reinaldo Dennes in Texas and Thomas Mitchell Overton in Florida on Nov. 19. Two more Florida executions are scheduled for Dec. 1 and Dec. 10. The list also shows a military execution of Nidal Malik Hasan, who was convicted in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, set for Dec. 3.

Earlier this month, California Gov. Gavin Newsom moved to commute all 548 death sentences in his state to life without parole, as Edit USA reported.