Most Virginians favor stricter gun laws, but many question their effectiveness, according to a new Roanoke College Poll. Residents also support the commonwealth’s existing method of redistricting and drawing legislative lines. The Institute for Policy and Opinion Research (IPOR) at Roanoke College interviewed 800 Virginia residents between Feb. 9 and Feb. 16, 2026.
The survey was conducted as the Virginia General Assembly debated bills on gun control and redistricting. The results have a weighted margin of error of 4.43%.
Gun Control
A majority of Virginians support a wide variety of gun control measures, including requiring gun owners to be licensed (71%) and requiring all guns to be registered with the state (67%). Most also support banning semi-automatic rifles (57%), semi-automatic shotguns (52%), and magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition (53%). An even larger share (59%) favor banning guns often referred to as assault rifles, and half (50%) favor banning semi-automatic handguns. However, only 19% support banning all firearms.
Virginians are nearly evenly split on whether it is more important to protect the rights of Americans to own guns (49%) or to control gun ownership (48%). They also think better enforcement of existing laws (56%) is more likely to reduce gun-related violence than adopting stricter laws (42%). When asked which factor is most responsible for mass shootings, respondents most commonly cited poor mental health policies (52%), followed by weak gun laws (30%) and poor enforcement of gun laws (29%). Almost half (49%) think stricter gun laws would make them safer, but slightly more think it would make no difference (35%) or make them less safe (16%). Virginians are also somewhat skeptical of making it more difficult for citizens to legally carry guns, with 39% saying it would make them safer, 29% saying it would make them less safe, and 32% saying it would make no difference.
Redistricting
A majority of respondents (62%) support the current method of mapping electoral districts. When asked how they would vote in a referendum to amend the state constitution and change that method, most (52%) said they would vote to keep the current process while 44% said they would vote to adopt the change proposed by the General Assembly. The Roanoke College Poll did a prior look at this issue in January 2016. Those results can be found at the conclusion of the topline.
Job Approval, Favorable/Unfavorable, and Directions of Virginia and Nation
Two-thirds of Virginians (65%) think the country has gotten off on the wrong track, while just over half (51%) believe the commonwealth is on the wrong track. The assessment of the nation rebounded from the November poll, but the view of Virginia is more negative than November. President Donald Trump’s job disapproval rating (61%) remains similar to November, while Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s initial approval level (53% approve/39% disapprove) is extremely close to former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s final numbers (54% approve/38% disapprove).
Spanberger’s favorable rating (51% favorable/39% unfavorable) declined somewhat from what may have been a short-lived “honeymoon” following her November electoral victory. Trump’s 33% favorable rating is slightly lower than is typical of his second term.
Analysis
“Virginians clearly support a variety of gun control measures, but many question their efficacy,” said Dr. Harry Wilson, interim director for IPOR and author of three books on gun politics. “A majority supports bans on essentially any and all semi-automatic firearms. But many think current gun laws aren’t the cause of mass shootings, and less than half think that stricter laws will make them safer. There is also strong support for gun registration and owner licensing, regulations that are anathema to many Second Amendment supporters.”
“On the redistricting issue that seems to be headed to a referendum, Virginians generally prefer the current system. Still, given the partisan ramifications and the Democratic-inspired wording of the question ‘to restore fairness’ to elections, this may not be indicative of the outcome.”
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