I'm not gonna provide a cite, and I don't have any polls for you (my disdain for such things has been voiced around here before...)
I grew up in Northern Virginia, however.
Let me preface this by pointing out that it's easy for pollsters to ask loaded questions such as 'do you support reasonable X control?" and elicit answers that, like the questions, don't really have anything to do with actual legislation that might actually be passed.
Unfortunately, the same thing happens with politics as well, with the – quite evident, I should say – result that government really doesn't represent the people. It, at best, offers at regular intervals a "lesser of two evils" contest – one which is either about no real issue at all, or is "about" largely imagined, exaggerated, and irrelevant "issues".
Anyway, "even" with the large immigrant population, I am surprised when I encounter someone expressing anti-gun sentiment. Many people, it's true, genuinely
don't care at all, one way or the other. But I have spent (and continue to spend) a lot of time in NoVA. I can literally
count the number of times I have received or encountered anti-gun sentiment amongst Virginias, "new" or old. Has it happened? Sure.
Specifically, I have open carried
a lot in NoVA, for many years now. (A lot of interesting times, interesting places, to say the least.) Now, maybe it's because I have long hair, a beard, and am obviously not a cop, or a wannabe, or pretty much anything else – just me! – but the
overwhelming response or sentiment I receive (if any at all) is "cool!" or "right on!" or "I didn't know I could do that!". And this is from people of all walks of life – any subculture, or economic status, or national background or race you can imagine (and, yes, even including Democrats). Amongst my friends from NoVA, virtually all are what I would describe as "quite pro gun", and they're as subculturally diverse a bunch as the rest.
Most folks in NoVA aren't anti-gun.
Most folks, if they weren't presented with a false "lesser of two evils, but we're still gonna [strike]stick it somewhere[/strike] ban or overlegislate
something" dilemma, don't particularly desire gun control more than they desire ridiculous drug (but only a few) control, pointless and archaic ABC laws, grossly overinflated taxes coming from a hundred different places, or ridiculously low speed limits (with the state profiting yet again at their expense). These things are imposed on them, with a mockery of their "consent", over the constant extortionist threat of
even greater vile encroachments on their attempts to simply
live their lives without interference.
I believe that without a shadow of a doubt. And this is why open carry, and the resulting normalization of real, meaningful and useful
gun rights that eveyone can appreciate, is so crucial. (Also why I tease CCers so relentlessly. Come on folks! Open carry really works, and you can do it, too.
)
(And it's why I
relentlessly vote libertarian.
)