Florida voters, 89-8 percent, favor a process that would allow police or family members to get a court order to remove guns from a violent person — a provision backed by Scott and the Florida Senate. | AP Photo Polls show most Florida voters spurn many NRA-backed policies of GOP-led Legislature

MIAMI — From supporting an assault weapons ban to opposing armed teachers in class, Florida voters reject many of the NRA-backed policies of the GOP-led state Legislature, according to a new poll that found 65 percent favored stricter gun laws overall.

The Quinnipiac University poll began a week after 17 people were fatally shot at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., and was finished just as state legislators approved similar House and Senate bills that called for a three-day wait and 21-year-old age limit for long gun purchases as well as programs to arm teachers and provide $400 million in spending to harden schools from attack and provide more mental health care.


In three separate committees, Democrats tried and failed to amend the bill to ban tactical rifles, or assault weapons. But Republicans prevailed and kept the measure out and also eschewed banning high-volume ammunition magazines.

The poll, however, shows that Florida voters favor an assault weapons ban, 62-33 percent, and a large majority, 62–34 percent, want large-volume magazines banned. They also oppose arming teachers by 56-40 percent. By 78-20 percent, they want all gun buyers to be 21 or older and by 87-10 percent they support waiting periods for all gun buys. Currently, there is no waiting period for buying a long gun, which can be purchased by an 18-year-old.

The NRA’s position on each of those issues is in the minority.

The relatively minor gun control provisions in the various plans of from the House, Senate or governor are supported by majorities of Republicans in the poll. Those gun control items not favored by Republicans, such as a ban on assault weapons or high-capacity magazines are not in the plans — a sign that the proposals were crafted by Republican lawmakers keenly aware of the threat of a primary challenge on their right flank.

But from a general election perspective, Republicans and the NRA could face trouble in November if the poll numbers hold.

“Obviously, pro-gun people face a task that is, by historical standards, unusually challenging,” said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll. “We live in a sharply divided country politically. But we’re not divided on guns.”

Still, there’s nuance.

Ryan Petty, whose 14-year-old daughter Alaina was murdered Feb. 14, said he doesn’t favor an assault-weapons ban and he said he hopes the debate about what happened in Parkland doesn’t become focused on firearms.

“The problem is we’re so entrenched in our positions, we impugn the motives of the other side. That’s how polarized we are. This time it must be different. We have to focus on school safety and fund mental health,” said Petty, who is advocating for Gov. Rick Scott’s proposal, which doesn’t call for arming teachers and spends $500 million for bolstering school security and adds more for mental health treatment and counseling.

“You can’t solve this with a single new law — ban assault weapons — then they [shooters] move on to another weapon. We need to harden the schools. We need to fix that. And we have to deal with mental health issues. These school shooters need help before they turn,” Petty said.

The poll shows that the focus on schools over guns is favored by a majority of Floridians; 51 percent said "increased security at school entrances" would do more to reduce school gun violence, while 32 percent favored stricter gun laws, and only 12 percent saw arming teachers as the best solution.

Florida voters, 89-8 percent, favor a process that would allow police or family members to get a court order to remove guns from a violent person — a provision backed by Scott and the Florida Senate — and by 92-6 percent they favor banning gun ownership for someone who has had a restraining order for stalking or domestic violence.

The findings are similar to a Florida Atlantic University survey, released Wednesday, that found 56 percent of voters opposed arming teachers. Only 31 percent supported it. Democrats were most opposed, by 74 to 16 percent, followed by independents, who opposed it 57 to 26 percent. Republicans, reflecting the sentiments of the Republican-led Legislature, President Donald Trump and the NRA, support the idea 53 to 37 percent in the FAU survey, which was conducted with automated “robopolling” technology and online interviews of 800 voters.

By 69-23 percent, Florida voters in the FAU survey supported banning “assault-style” weapons.

Contrary also to the NRA — but in line with Scott and the Legislature — 78 percent of Florida voters supported raising the minimum age to buy a gun from 18 to 21. The survey didn’t note, however, that handgun buyers already have to be 21 in Florida but buyers of shotguns and rifles can be 18.

Scott, who broke with the NRA over the 21-year age limit, has started to soften some of his political posturing over firearms ahead of a possible bid against Sen. Bill Nelson, who supports a ban on tactical or “assault” rifles. Quinnipiac’s Senate race poll showed Nelson was winning by about 4 points and FAU’s survey had Scott down by 2 points.

In Quinnipiac’s poll, voters overall said a Senate candidate’s support for Trump would make them less likely to vote for that politician by 42-23 percent. In FAU’s survey, Floridians disapproved of President’s Trump's response to the recent mass shooting by 49–34 percent. Also, it found, support for the NRA was also a drag on Scott.

“The bad news for Scott is his A+ rating from the National Rifle Association (NRA) makes 44 percent of voters less likely to vote for him and only 26 percent more likely,” said Monica Escaleras, director of FAU’s Business and Economics Polling Initiative. “A deeper dive into these numbers also finds Independents less likely to vote for Scott, 43 to 17 percent, because of his NRA rating.”

The FAU poll also found that 39 percent said the availability of guns was a major factor contributing to mass shootings, 24 percent selected a lack of mental health care and 18 percent attributed it most to violent media and video games.

The FAU survey also found that the most popular measure, so-called universal background checks for all gun buyers is supported by 87 percent. All of Florida’s three mass shooters — at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, the Fort Lauderdale airport and Parkland high school — legally bought their firearms and passed a background check.