Megan Brenan is reporting for Gallup [dot] com Americans' support for stricter gun control has decreased by five percentage points to 52 percent, the lowest number since 2014, according to data reported last week by the Gallup organization. At the same time, 35 percent of U.S. adults think laws covering the sale of firearms should be kept as they are now and 11 percent favor less strict laws. Gallup has been tracking public opinion on this subject since 1990 when the nation's crime rate was high and a record 78 percent of Americans supported stricter laws for gun sales. Since then calls for tougher gun control have generally increased following mass shootings and then faded as the memory of each receded. For example, after the Parkland, Florida, school shooting three years ago, support for more gun control rose to 67 percent, the highest since 1993. That support began to fall last year. The latest decline in support for stricter control comes after an overall seven-point drop last year, which was mostly attributable to a 14-point drop among Republicans, to 22 percent. The decline this year is driven by a 15-point plunge among independents. At the same time, Democrats' desire for more restrictive gun laws has increased to 91 percent. Read more at news [dot] gallup [dot] com.