Mass shootings often dominated news headlines in 2015, continuing an alarming upward trend. As a result, gun control will likely continue to be one of the principal hot-button issues surrounding the 2016 election.
Nearly 70 percent of respondents polled by Reuters/Ipsos in December 2015 said gun control needed to be addressed. It’s clearly an issue at the forefront of many Americans’ minds.
MORE: 3 Reasons the Presidential Primary System Still Works
Of course, the gun control debate hits closer to home for some people than for others.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) intermittently releases data on firearm-related deaths. InsideGov examined 2014 data from the CDC — the most recent data set available — on firearm-related deaths to see where the most people were killed in shootings, including self-inflicted deaths. We ranked all 50 states in reverse order by firearm-related deaths per 100K individuals.
Note: Ties in 2014 data were broken based on 2013 data. The state with a higher firearm death rate in 2013 was ranked higher.
#50. Hawaii
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 2.6
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 2.6
Percent increase/decrease: 0%
#49. Rhode Island
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 2.9
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 5.3
Percent increase/decrease: -45%
#48. Massachusetts
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 3.2
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 3.1
Percent increase/decrease: +3%
#47. New York
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 4.2
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 4.2
Percent increase/decrease: 0%
#46. Connecticut
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 4.9
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 4.4
Percent increase/decrease: +11%
#45. New Jersey
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 5.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 5.7
Percent increase/decrease: -7%
#44. Minnesota
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 6.6
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 7.6
Percent increase/decrease: -13%
#43. California
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 7.4
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 7.7
Percent increase/decrease: -4%
#42. Iowa
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 7.4
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 8.0
Percent increase/decrease: -8%
#41. Wisconsin
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 8.2
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.7
Percent increase/decrease: -15%
#40. New Hampshire
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 8.6
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 6.4
Percent increase/decrease: +34%
#39. Illinois
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.0
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 8.6
Percent increase/decrease: +5%
#38. Maryland
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.0
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.7
Percent increase/decrease: -7%
#37. Maine
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.9
Percent increase/decrease: -15%
#36. Nebraska
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.4
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.0
Percent increase/decrease: +4%
#35. Washington
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.6
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 8.7
Percent increase/decrease: +10%
#34. Vermont
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 9.2
Percent increase/decrease: +12%
#33. South Dakota
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.0
Percent increase/decrease: +3%
#32. Virginia
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.2
Percent increase/decrease: +1%
#31. Ohio
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.0
Percent increase/decrease: -6%
#30. Pennsylvania
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.5
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.2
Percent increase/decrease: -6%
#29. Texas
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.6
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.6
Percent increase/decrease: 0%
#28. Delaware
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.1
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 10.3
Percent increase/decrease: +8%
#27. Michigan
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.1
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.0
Percent increase/decrease: -8%
#26. Kansas
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.4
Percent increase/decrease: -1%
#25. Florida
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.5
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.9
Percent increase/decrease: -3%
#24. Oregon
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.7
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.0
Percent increase/decrease: +6%
#23. North Carolina
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.7
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.1
Percent increase/decrease: -3%
#22. Colorado
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.1
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.5
Percent increase/decrease: +5%
#21. North Dakota
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.1
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 11.8
Percent increase/decrease: +3%
#20. Utah
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.6
Percent increase/decrease: -2%
#19. Indiana
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.3
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 13.0
Percent increase/decrease: -5%
#18. Idaho
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 13.1
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 14.1
Percent increase/decrease: -7%
#17. Arizona
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 13.4
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 14.1
Percent increase/decrease: -5%
#16. Georgia
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 13.7
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 12.6
Percent increase/decrease: +9%
#15. Kentucky
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 13.8
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 13.7
Percent increase/decrease: +1%
#14. West Virginia
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 14.5
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 14.3
Percent increase/decrease: +1%
#13. Nevada
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 14.7
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 13.8
Percent increase/decrease: +7%
#12. Tennessee
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 14.7
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.4
Percent increase/decrease: -5%
#11. Missouri
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.2
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 14.4
Percent increase/decrease: +6%
#10. South Carolina
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.5
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.2
Percent increase/decrease: +2%
#9. Oklahoma
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.6
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 16.5
Percent increase/decrease: -5%
#8. New Mexico
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.8
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.5
Percent increase/decrease: +2%
#7. Montana
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 15.8
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 16.7
Percent increase/decrease: -5%
#6. Wyoming
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 16.0
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 16.7
Percent increase/decrease: -4%
#5. Arkansas
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 16.4
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 16.8
Percent increase/decrease: -2%
#4. Alabama
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 16.7
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 17.6
Percent increase/decrease: -5%
#3. Mississippi
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 18.0
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 17.8
Percent increase/decrease: +1%
#2. Alaska
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 18.8
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 19.8
Percent increase/decrease: -5%
#1. Louisiana
2014 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 18.9
2013 firearm-related deaths per 100K people: 19.3
Percent increase/decrease: -2%
