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Tennesseans Broadly Agree On These Two Gun Restrictions

An MTSU poll finds support among gun rights and gun control advocates for more background checks and restricting sales to those with mental illness.
Chas Sisk / WPLN
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WPLN (File photo)
An MTSU poll finds support among gun rights and gun control advocates for more background checks and restricting sales to those with mental illness.

Hear the radio version of this story.

More than 80-percent of Tennesseans think that private gun sales should be more regulated and the mentally ill should be barred from purchasing firearms. New polling from MTSU finds broad agreement, even among gun rights advocates. 

This poll of 603 registered voters found nearly 70-percent of Tennesseans favor gun rights over gun control.

But on both sides, most agree there should be background checks for sales at gun shows and between two private individuals. And firearms should be off-limits to those with mental illness.

"Our poll of Tennessee voters suggests that if these two measures can find strong general support here, they can probably find it just about anywhere,” MTSU poll director Jason Reineke said. 

Tennesseans diverge on other forms of gun regulation, though. There are wide gaps on the issue of a federal database to track all guns and a ban on military-style rifles.

More: Read poll questions here

Asked for a response, John Harris of the Tennessee Firearms Association said the poll was misleading.

The question about background checks included person-to-person sales and gun shows, where some background checks are already required. And on mental illness, Harris points out the questions didn't specify whether this was a long-term diagnosis such as schizophrenia or temporary condition such as acute depression.

“The questions are so poorly phrased, I don’t think you can draw valid conclusions from it,” Harris said.

When voters fully understand the laws already in place, Harris argues most Tennesseans don’t see a need for more gun control measures.

From the MTSU poll:

Copyright 2015 WPLN News

Blake Farmer
Blake Farmer is WPLN's assistant news director, but he wears many hats - reporter, editor and host. He covers the Tennessee state capitol while also keeping an eye on Fort Campbell and business trends, frequently contributing to national programs. Born in Tennessee and educated in Texas, Blake has called Nashville home for most of his life.