American Executions Surged in the Past Year to Highest Level in 16 Years.
The number of state-sanctioned killings in the US has sharply risen in 2025, hitting a level not seen in 16 years. This surge is attributed to a focused campaign to reinvigorate the death penalty, combined with a notable shift in the approach of the nation's highest court toward last-minute appeals.
A Sobering Count: 47 Executions in a Single Year
A total of 47 men—all of whom were male—were put to death by states maintaining the death penalty in 2025. This figure is nearly twice the total from the previous year, marking the most active period for capital punishment in the United States since 2009.
"Data indicates that the death penalty in 2025 is increasingly unpopular with the public even as elected officials schedule executions in search of diminishing political benefits."
An International Exception
This pronounced rise further separates the US from nearly all other developed nations, almost none of which still carry out executions. In recent years, only Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan have conducted executions among similarly developed states.
Contradictory Trends
The resurgence of executions clashes directly with broader patterns and modern public opinion. Over the past two decades, the use of the death penalty had been in a steady decrease. Meanwhile, polling indicate approval of capital punishment for murder convictions has fallen to a 50-year low, with just over half of respondents in favor. A majority of citizens under the age of 55 now are against it.
Executive Action Sets the Tone
On his inauguration day back in office, the sitting President issued an presidential directive titled "Reinstating Capital Punishment." This order sought to ensure that laws authorizing capital punishment were "upheld and properly enforced," signaling a major shift from the prior administration.
"It’s in the air, it’s in the national rhetoric sent down from the top—you use violence and cruelty to solve social problems," remarked a prominent activist against executions.
A Surge in State Executions
The national initiative was echoed and intensified at the level of individual states. The state of Florida emerged as a notable outlier, conducting 19 executions in 2025—a staggering increase from just one the previous year. This broke the state's prior annual record.
Alongside Alabama, South Carolina, and Texas, these a quartet of jurisdictions were responsible for almost three-quarters of all executions this year. In total, a dozen states actively used their execution facilities, up from nine in 2024.
Evolving Methods
As more executions occurred, some states turned to more controversial techniques. Louisiana ended a 15-year hiatus and became the second state to use nitrogen gas as an execution method. Witnesses reported the prisoner visibly shook for several minutes during the process.
In another development, South Carolina carried out the first execution by firing squad in the US since 2010, using this method for three of its total executions this year. Reports suggested that in an instance, faulty targeting may have caused extended agony for the individual.
The Supreme Court's Role
The increase in death sentences carried out is also connected to the position of the nation's highest court. The court's conservative majority rejected all applications to halt an execution in 2025, a rare display of judicial disengagement.
This represents a shift from the court's traditional function as a final avenue for appeals based on claims of innocence, rights-based arguments, or allegations of cruel punishment. "The system now functions lacking a crucial backup," commented a legal scholar. "Federal courts are supposed to serve as a final check, but that stop gap has been eviscerated."
