Poll Finds More than Half of Floridians Oppose Guns at Campuses of State Universities

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Saint Leo University Polling Institute

Mar 30, 2015, 01:24 ET

SAINT LEO, Fla., March 30, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a recent Saint Leo University Polling Institute survey of 522 Florida adults, 56 percent were opposed to allowing individuals with concealed firearms licenses to carry guns at state campuses. Thirty-two percent supported proposed new legislation that would reverse a current firearms ban, and allow individuals who are 21 and older and who hold concealed firearms licenses, to bring the weapons onto state campuses. Florida has both state colleges and state universities.

A bill being considered by the Florida Legislature would reverse a ban on firearms and allow students 21 and over to carry concealed weapons on all 12 of Florida's public universities. Do you support or oppose this legislation?

	All	Republicans	Independents	Democrats	Male	Female
32%	Support	48%	27%	20%	34%	26%
56%	Oppose	40%	58%	69%	54%	60%
12%	Don't know / not sure	12%	15%	11%	12%	15%

The State House and Senate measures currently under discussion have been heard in initial committees. The proposal received backing in the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee in January and narrowly passed the Senate Criminal Justice Committee in February.

The proposed legislation stems from an incident in November 2014 when a gunman opened fire at Florida State University's library. The incident refueled a debate about guns on college campuses. Supporters say the proposal could help prevent tragedies such as the Florida State incident, while opponents have argued that allowing guns at colleges and universities could make campuses more dangerous. The proposal has been opposed by the Florida Board of Governors that oversees the public system, university police chiefs, and the 12 public universities.

"If this legislation passes, it is very likely that a tragic accident on a college campus will occur where someone will be seriously hurt or killed," said Dr. David Persky, chair of the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Department at Saint Leo. "I do not support the bill as I personally believe that it will create 'armed campuses' and have the exact opposite effect of what it was intended to do," Persky added.

For more information, please visit the Saint Leo Polls website at http://polls.saintleo.edu.

SOURCE Saint Leo University Polling Institute