US Executions Skyrocketed in the Past Year to Peak in Over a Decade and a Half.

The count of executions in the United States 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 significant change in the stance of the US Supreme Court toward last-minute appeals.

A Grim Tally: Nearly 50 Deaths in a Single Year

Exactly 47 men—each one were male—were executed by individual states that utilize the death penalty in 2025. This number represents nearly double the count from the previous year, marking the most active period for executions in the country since 2009.

"Data indicates that the death penalty in 2025 is increasingly unpopular with the American people even as politicians carry out death sentences in search of waning political benefits."

An International Exception

This pronounced rise further isolates the US from nearly all other advanced economies, very few of which continue the practice. Currently, just a handful of Asian nations have carried out executions among peer countries.

A Public Opinion Divide

The comeback of state killings clashes directly with broader patterns and modern public opinion. Over the past two decades, the use of the death penalty had been in gradual decline. Meanwhile, surveys indicate approval of capital punishment for murder convictions has fallen to a 50-year low, with 52% of respondents in favor. A majority of citizens under the age of 55 now oppose it.

Executive Action Sets the Tone

On his first day back in office, the President issued an executive order titled "Reinstating Capital Punishment." This order sought to ensure that statutes permitting capital punishment were "upheld and properly enforced," signaling a major shift from the prior administration.

"The tone is set, the national dialogue sent down from the top—you use violence and cruelty to solve social problems," remarked a prominent anti-death penalty advocate.

State-Level Frenzy

The federal push was mirrored and amplified at the level of individual states. Florida became a particular outlier, carrying out 19 executions in 2025—a staggering increase from just one the previous year. This broke the state's previous record.

Alongside several other southern states, these a quartet of jurisdictions were responsible for almost 75% of all executions this year. In total, a dozen states actively used their death chambers, up from nine in 2024.

More Extreme Execution Protocols

As more executions occurred, some states turned to increasingly extreme techniques. One state concluded a long period without executions and followed another state's lead to use nitrogen hypoxia as an means of execution. Witnesses reported the condemned individual convulsed for several minutes during the procedure.

Meanwhile, South Carolina performed the first execution by a squad of shooters in the US since 2010, using this method for three of its total executions this year. Accounts suggested that in one case, imprecise aim may have caused extended agony for the condemned.

A Changed Judicial Landscape

The surge in executions is also linked to the posture of the nation's highest court. The majority-conservative bench denied every request to halt an execution in 2025, a rare display of reluctance to intervene.

This represents a shift from the court's historical role as a last resort for appeals based on innocence claims, rights-based arguments, or allegations of cruel punishment. "We’re now operating lacking a crucial backup," commented a legal scholar. "Federal courts are supposed to serve as a backstop, but that safeguard has been removed."