New Poll: 92 Percent of South Dakota Gun Owners Support Requirement of a Permit in Order to Carry a Concealed Handgun in Public

PIERRE, S.D. – Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund and the South Dakota chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown, today released a new poll conducted by SurveyUSA on behalf of Everytown that finds the vast majority of South Dakota voters surveyed – including most gun owners – support the state’s law requiring a permit to carry a concealed handgun in public places. The poll results (available here) come as the South Dakota Senate considers two dangerous bills, SB 104 and SB 175, both of which would dismantle the state’s current concealed carry permit requirement and make it easy for certain weapons offenders, drug users and people with histories of violence to carry hidden, loaded handguns in public.

Among other results, the poll shows:

• 87 percent of South Dakota voters – including 92 percent of South Dakota gun owners – support the state’s requirement of a permit in order to carry a concealed handgun in public.
• Support for the permit requirement is bipartisan, with 86 percent of Republican respondents and 92 percent of Democratic respondents saying they support the state’s permit requirement.
• 62 percent of South Dakota voters – including 68 percent of South Dakota gun owners – oppose requiring colleges and universities in South Dakota to allow people to carry guns on college campuses.

STATEMENT FROM SHANNON HOIME, VOLUNTEER CHAPTER LEADER WITH THE SOUTH DAKOTA CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA:

“Public safety matters to South Dakotans, and it’s not a surprise that a wide majority of us support our common-sense gun laws. With dangerous legislation under consideration that would make it legal to carry hidden, loaded handguns in public without a permit, our lawmakers should stand up for their constituents and for common sense.”