The airwaves are filled with election issues, as both parties vie to gain the upper hand in the November elections. Democracy, the economy, and immigration appear to be top issues on people’s minds.

Though things can change quickly, one issue that seems to be flying under the radar this year is gun control.

The recent attempt on Donald Trump’s life refocused some attention on guns, but it quickly dissipated once more pressing issues resurfaced. So, why does gun violence get so little attention as an election topic of concern?

Firearm deaths and injuries have been down over the last year. From the Gun Violence Archive, the pandemic years (2021 and 2022) experienced a surge in all types of firearm deaths and injuries. This included mass shootings (defined as four or more people killed or injured, excluding the shooter) and a subset of these events, mass murders (defined as four or more people killed, excluding the shooter).

The steady upward trend of firearm deaths and injuries since 2014 appears to be breaking, based on the data over the first half of 2024. If this new trend persists, the number of mass shootings may be down by as much as 20 percent compared to either 2022 or 2023. The number of mass murders will also be........

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