Criminal Threat, Immigrant/Minority Threat, and Political Ideology: An Examination of Handgun Permits Across Texas Counties

Objectives To assess the extent to which crime, Hispanic‐to‐white population changes, black‐to‐white population changes, and conservative political appeals affect gun permit application rates across Texas counties. Methods This article uses spatial lag regression and robust regression with county‐level data to assess structural sources of variation in handgun permitting across Texas counties in 2016. Conclusions Spatial and robust regression model results confirm that median incomes, Republican votes, and rising rates of Hispanic‐to‐white populations are significant predictors of handgun permit application rates. The results call attention to the centrality of Hispanic threat and the prevalence of partisan politics in aggregate permit‐seeking processes.