DENVER—A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday shows that most Colorado voters oppose the state’s newly passed gun-control laws, refuting Democratic lawmakers’ insistence that the gun bills enjoy popular support.
At the same time, the survey found that most voters say that the two Democratic legislators facing a Sept. 10 recall election should not be removed from office on the basis of their votes for stricter firearms laws.
“With wide partisan and gender divisions, Colorado voters oppose the state’s stricter new gun control laws, but they don’t want to recall State Senate President John Morse or Sen. Angela Giron because they supported these laws,” said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. “Philosophically, voters don’t want a recall election every time they disagree with a legislator. They’d rather deal with it every four years.”
The poll, conducted from Aug. 15-21, found that Colorado voters opposing by a margin of 54 to 40 percent the three gun-control bills signed by Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper in March.
The passage of strict new gun-control laws touched off an outcry in Colorado, leading to the recall elections of Ms. Giron in Pueblo and Mr. Morse in Colorado Springs. Several companies that make firearms-related products announced that they would leave the state.
Despite that, the poll showed that voters agree by a margin of 54 to 35 percent that Mr. Morse should not be recalled as a result of his votes for the gun legislation. The margin against removing Ms. Giron from office was 52 to 36 percent.
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Those results come as good news for the two Democrats, albeit with one caveat: The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 1,184 Colorado voters statewide, not within the legislative districts conducting the recalls.
“[S]tatewide voter opinion doesn’t matter in the case of the recalls. Only the opinions of voters living in Morse’s Senate District 11 and Senator Giron’s District 3 make a difference at this point,” said Colorado Peak Politics, a conservative website.
The polling on the gun-control laws mirrors an earlier Quinnipiac poll on the Colorado state legislature. Released in June, that survey found that 49 percent of voters disapprove of the Democrat-controlled legislature’s performance, while 36 percent approve.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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