US Executions Skyrocketed in the Past Year to Peak in Over a Decade and a Half.
The count of executions in the US has dramatically increased in 2025, reaching a level not seen in 16 years. This sharp uptick is attributed to a concerted push to reinvigorate judicial killings, combined with a notable shift in the stance of the nation's highest court toward last-minute appeals.
A Grim Tally: 47 Executions in a Single Year
A total of 47 individuals—each one were male—were executed by individual states maintaining the death penalty this year. This figure represents nearly double the count from 2024, constituting the highest annual total for capital punishment in the country since 2009.
"The evidence shows that the death penalty in 2025 is increasingly unpopular with the American people even as politicians schedule executions in search of waning political benefits."
An International Exception
This sharp increase further separates the United States from most other developed nations, almost none of which still carry out executions. Currently, just Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan have conducted executions among similarly developed states.
Contradictory Trends
The comeback of state killings stands in stark contrast with long-term trends and current public sentiment. Over the past two decades, the use of the death penalty had been in gradual decline. Meanwhile, polling indicate approval of capital punishment for murder convictions has reached a half-century low, with 52% of respondents in favor. Most of adults under the age of 55 now are against it.
Presidential Influence
On his first day back in office, the President issued an executive order titled "Restoring the Death Penalty." This order aimed to guarantee that statutes permitting capital punishment were "upheld and properly enforced," signaling a major shift from the previous presidency.
"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," stated a prominent activist against executions.
A Surge in State Executions
The national initiative was mirrored and intensified at the level of individual states. The state of Florida became a notable outlier, conducting 19 executions in 2025—a staggering increase from just one the year before. This broke the state's prior annual record.
Alongside several other southern states, these four states were responsible for almost three-quarters of all executions this year. In total, a dozen states actively used their execution facilities, up from nine states in 2024.
Evolving Methods
As activity increased, some states turned to increasingly extreme methods. Louisiana concluded a 15-year hiatus and became the second state to use nitrogen hypoxia as an means of execution. Witnesses reported the condemned individual visibly shook for several minutes during the procedure.
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 one case, imprecise aim may have caused extended agony for the individual.
A Changed Judicial Landscape
The surge in executions is also linked to the position of the nation's highest court. The majority-conservative bench rejected all applications to halt an execution in 2025, a notable demonstration of judicial disengagement.
This marks a change from the court's traditional function as a last resort for legal challenges based on innocence claims, constitutional arguments, or charges of excessive cruelty. "The system now functions lacking a crucial backup," noted a legal scholar. "Federal courts are meant to act as a backstop, but that safeguard has been eviscerated."