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U.S. Executions See Sharp Rise in 2025, Driven by Florida, Amidst Declining Public Support
The United States has recorded its highest number of executions in approximately 15 years in 2025, largely attributed to a significant increase in Florida, according to a year-end report from the Death Penalty Information Center. This surge occurs despite public support for capital punishment reaching historic lows.
As of Monday, 46 executions have been carried out nationwide this year, with an additional two scheduled before the end of December. The last time the annual total reached this level was in 2010, also with 46 executions. This year’s figure nearly doubles the 24 executions reported in the previous year.
“The increase in this year’s execution numbers was caused by the outlier state of Florida, where the governor set a record number of executions,” stated Robin Maher, the executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center. Maher further highlighted that “The data show that the decisions of [Florida] Gov. [Ron] DeSantis and other elected officials are increasingly at odds with the decisions of American juries and the opinions of the American public.”
The center’s report characterizes 2025’s execution figures as representative of “divergent and contradictory trends,” particularly in light of dwindling public support for the death penalty. A Gallup poll released in October revealed that only 52% of Americans favor capital punishment, marking a five-decade low.
This figure has not been this low since 1972, the year the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily halted capital punishment.
The poll also indicated that 44% of individuals outright oppose the death penalty, the highest percentage recorded since 1966.
These shifting public sentiments are mirrored in the decisions of capital murder case juries. Of the juries tasked with sentencing in cases where the death penalty was a possibility, 56% ultimately rejected capital punishment. Out of more than 50 capital trials conducted this year, only 14 juries unanimously agreed to impose the death penalty.