Gun issues are expected to increase the turnout among women at the polls in 2014, the same women who typically don’t participate in midterm elections, according to a
poll conducted for the Women Donors Network.
The survey of 1,500 women conducted by Democratic pollster Diane Feldman and Republican pollster Bob Carpenter found that 63 percent of women want tougher gun laws, 63 percent are "very concerned about gun violence, and 64 percent believe that the laws Congress and the President have proposed would have "a great deal: or "some" impact on the level of violence.
“As we approach the 2014 congressional elections, the question will be to what degree do single women, lower income women, persons of color participate since that’s the Democratic edge,” Feldman said. “And this is an issue that can encourage them to participate.”
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Feldman added that issues in the recent gun control debate, such as universal background checks, mental health, and violence in schools has captured the interest of women who don't normally vote in off-presidential election years and may be a catalyst that drives them to the polls next year.
The survey, which was first reported by
Talking Points Memo, found that woman overall are less in favor of gun rights than men. Their opposition, when combined with minorities, could be “significant” to any efforts to expand gun rights, typically favored by older white men who normally vote in midterm elections.
According to the Pew Research Center, the biggest differences in opinion between women and men are on banning semi-automatic assault weapons and creating a federal database to track gun sales.
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