US Executions Skyrocketed in 2025 to Peak in 16 Years.
The number of executions in the United States has dramatically increased in 2025, reaching a level not seen in since 2009. This surge is linked to a focused campaign to reinvigorate judicial killings, coupled with a notable shift in the stance of the nation's highest court toward last-minute appeals.
A Grim Tally: Nearly 50 Deaths in a Single Year
A total of 47 men—all of whom were male—were executed by individual states maintaining the death penalty in 2025. This number is nearly double the total from 2024, marking the most active period for executions in the United States in 16 years.
"Data indicates that the death penalty in 2025 is increasingly unpopular with the public even as politicians carry out death sentences in search of diminishing political benefits."
An International Exception
This pronounced rise further isolates the United States from nearly all other developed nations, almost none of which still carry out executions. Currently, only a handful of Asian nations have conducted capital punishment among peer countries.
Contradictory Trends
The resurgence of state killings clashes directly with long-term trends and modern public opinion. Over the past two decades, the use of the death penalty had been in a steady decrease. At the same time, polling indicate approval of capital punishment for murder convictions has fallen to a 50-year low, with 52% of respondents in favor. Most of adults under the age of 55 now are against it.
Presidential Influence
On his inauguration day back in office, the sitting 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," marking a clear change 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," stated a prominent anti-death penalty advocate.
A Surge in State Executions
The federal push was echoed and intensified at the level of individual states. The state of Florida became a particular extreme case, conducting 19 executions in 2025—a staggering increase from just one the year before. 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 deaths this year. Overall, 12 states actively used their death chambers, up from nine states in 2024.
More Extreme Execution Protocols
As more executions occurred, some states turned to more controversial techniques. Louisiana ended a 15-year hiatus and became the second state to employ nitrogen hypoxia as an execution method. Observers reported the prisoner visibly shook for multiple minutes during the process.
In another development, South Carolina performed the first execution by a squad of shooters in the US since 2010, using this method for three of its five executions this year. Reports suggested that in an instance, faulty targeting may have prolonged suffering for the condemned.
A Changed Judicial Landscape
The surge in executions is also connected to the posture of the nation's highest court. The court's conservative majority rejected all applications to stay 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 appeals based on claims of innocence, constitutional arguments, or charges of excessive cruelty. "We’re now operating lacking a crucial backup," noted a law professor. "The judiciary are supposed to serve as a backstop, but that stop gap has been eviscerated."
