Public opinion regarding capital punishment remains divided as the federal government and several states navigate legal and procedural challenges to executions. While a recent Pew Research Center poll indicated that two-thirds of Americans support the death penalty for murder, a separate 2025 Gallup poll found support at 52%, the lowest level in over 50 years. This data comes as the federal government manages plans for the execution of Nidal Hasan, the former Army psychiatrist convicted in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting that killed 13 people.
The focus on execution methods has intensified following two unsuccessful attempts to administer lethal injections in Tennessee this year. State officials there were unable to locate veins for drugs intended for Christa Pike and Tony Carruthers. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee stated that the death penalty is an appropriate penalty determined by the state's citizens, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that Hasan would be executed by firing squad in a public manner, the first such federal event in 90 years.
Although President Trump initially supported livestreaming Hasan's execution, he later withdrew that support. An anonymous U.S. official told NPR that advisers expressed concern that a video could be used for recruitment by militant groups. Additionally, an October poll by ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos found that while 52% of Americans support Hasan’s execution, 80% oppose livestreaming the event. Historian Daniel LaChance noted that public executions largely ended in the 1930s as the use of anesthesia made public displays of pain appear scandalous to elites of that era.
The scale of modern executions is concentrated in a small number of jurisdictions. In 2026, six states were responsible for 31 executions, with Florida accounting for more than half of that total. Despite the high number of states that legally permit the death penalty, Robin Maher of the Death Penalty Information Center stated that many are issuing fewer death sentences, suggesting a trend toward decreased usage. This change affects state budgets, as Maher noted the high cost of maintaining a legal system for capital punishment.
The federal execution of Nidal Hasan is currently scheduled for December, though pending legal appeals could result in delays. This case serves as a precedent for the use of a firing squad and the potential for public access to military executions. The outcome of these proceedings and future polling may influence how state legislatures and federal officials approach execution protocols and the selection of methods, particularly as states continue to face difficulties with lethal injection procedures. While Michigan has maintained a ban on the death penalty since 1847, Texas remains the state with the highest number of executions since the 1970s.