Second survey finds overwhelming support for concealed carry license requirement
A second survey of Granite State voters finds overwhelming support for maintaining the current license requirement for carrying a concealed handgun in public.
Last week, Gov. Maggie Hassan said she intends to veto legislation passed by the House that would eliminate that requirement if the bill makes it to her desk. “New Hampshire’s current concealed carry permitting law has worked well for nearly a century – ensuring the Second Amendment rights of our citizens while helping to keep the Granite State one of the safest states in the nation,” she said in a statement.
Senate Bill 116, which was passed by the House in a 212-150 vote, would repeal the license requirement for carrying a concealed pistol or revolver. The vote was largely along party lines with 12 Democrats crossing the aisle to support the measure and 14 Republicans voting against it. The Senate passed a similar version of the bill 14-9 in a straight party vote.
Most New Hampshire voters support the governor’s position. 73% of likely voters surveyed by SurveyUSA expressed support for maintaining the licensing requirement. 24% voiced opposition to the law. The three-to-one margin is almost identical to results from a recent Public Policy Polling survey. Both surveys found broad support for the license requirement that cuts across partisan and ideological lines.
SurveyUSA is in the top tier of FiveThirtyEight’s Pollster Ratings, which rank over 300 survey companies based on an analysis of the historical accuracy of their polls and their methodology.
The survey was commissioned by Everytown for Gun Safety, an advocacy organization that supports legislation to prevent gun violence. SurveyUSA interviewed 627 likely New Hampshire voters on April 27-28, 2015. The survey has a margin of error of +/-3.5%.
