22 Percent of Americans Support Complete Ban on Smoking

A new Gallup poll finds 22 percent of Americans support a complete ban on smoking, The Huffington Post reports. Only 9 percent of smokers support a complete ban.

The poll found 55 percent of Americans would make it illegal to smoke in all public places.

There were regional differences in the public’s support of a complete ban on smoking. People living in the western and eastern sections of the country were most supportive, while people in the Midwest liked the idea the least.

The concept of making smoking illegal has become more popular since 2007, when 12 percent of the public supported it.

The vast majority of Americans know that smoking is harmful. The poll found 82 percent of Americans say smoking is very harmful for adults, and 13 percent say it’s somewhat harmful. Only 4 percent say it is not too or not at all harmful. Gallup found 63 percent of smokers say smoking is very harmful.

The poll found 39 percent of nonwhites back a total ban on smoking, compared with 15 percent of whites. A total ban is more popular among Democrats than Republicans, and with people with a high school degree or less, compared with people with more education.

In addition, the poll found 59 percent of Americans believe secondhand smoke is very harmful, up from 36 percent in 1994.