Texas Voters: Better Parenting, Stricter Gun Laws Would Make Schools Safer

Schools will be safer if laws governing firearms are strengthened, a majority of voters in Texas say.

The poll of 1,200 registered voters, conducted from June 8-17 by the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin and the Texas Tribune, found 51 percent believe gun laws should be stricter, while 31 percent want them left as they are and 13 percent say they should be less strict.

The survey comes a month after a 17-year-old student shot dead 10 people at Santa Fe High School.

When asked to choose one thing to blame for the violence, 18 percent blamed poor parenting, 17 percent said insufficient restrictions on gun ownership, 14 percent mentioned insufficient mental health resources for students and 13 percent zeroed in on bullying.

"A lot of people don't think these incidents have a lot to do with guns," said Josh Blank, manager of polling and research at the Texas Politics Project. "The emphasis on personal responsibility, whether that's parents or decisions made under psychological duress, is still there."

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