Update: In its 10/29/20 segment, CBS After Hours reported that 3 out of 4 voters are worried about post-election civil unrest, “both sides” are arming themselves, and gun sales are up 66% over last year (starts at about 7:20 in this video). The segment also notes there are many first-time gun buyers, and blacks and women are driving the surge in gun sales.
Background checks don’t exactly equal the number of guns sold, because some buyers may buy more than one gun in a transaction requiring a background. Also, a background check is required for every gun purchase, so these figures don’t show how many people own guns. But they provide an accurate picture of how gun purchase transactions are occurring.
Total since 1998: 361 million
Total for 2020: 28.8 million
- Illinois: 5.6 million
- Kentucky: 2.4 million
- Texas: 1.7 million
- Florida: 1.4 million
- Indiana: 1.2 million
- California: 1.2 million
- Pennsylvania: 1.0 million
(Rounded to nearest 100K; 2020 numbers through September. Source: Newsweek, here.)