American Executions Skyrocketed in 2025 to Highest Level in Over a Decade and a Half.

The number of state-sanctioned killings in the United States has sharply risen in 2025, reaching a rate not seen in 16 years. This sharp uptick is linked to a concerted push to reinvigorate the death penalty, combined with a notable shift in the stance of the US Supreme Court toward eleventh-hour pleas.

A Sobering Count: Nearly 50 Deaths in a Single Year

Exactly 47 individuals—all of whom were male—were executed by individual states maintaining the death penalty this year. This figure represents nearly twice the total from the previous year, marking the most active period for executions in the country in 16 years.

"The evidence shows that the death penalty in 2025 is growing less popular with the public even as politicians carry out death sentences in search of waning political benefits."

An International Exception

This pronounced rise further isolates the US from most other advanced economies, very few of which continue the practice. In recent years, just a handful of Asian nations have conducted executions among peer countries.

A Public Opinion Divide

The resurgence of state killings stands in stark contrast with long-term trends and modern public opinion. For years, the use of the death penalty had been in gradual decline. At the same time, polling indicate approval of capital punishment for those convicted of murder has reached a half-century low, with just over half of Americans in favor. A majority of adults 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 executive order titled "Restoring the Death Penalty." 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," stated a well-known 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 emerged as a particular outlier, conducting 19 executions in 2025—a dramatic increase from just one the year before. This shattered the state's previous record.

Alongside Alabama, South Carolina, and Texas, these a quartet of jurisdictions were the source of almost 75% of all executions this year. Overall, a dozen states employed their execution facilities, up from nine in 2024.

More Extreme Execution Protocols

As activity increased, some states turned to more controversial methods. Louisiana concluded a long period without executions and followed another state's lead to use nitrogen gas as an execution method. Observers reported the condemned individual visibly shook for several minutes during the procedure.

Meanwhile, a different state carried out the initial use by a squad of shooters in the US since 2010, deploying this approach for three of its five executions this year. Accounts suggested that in an instance, faulty targeting may have caused extended agony for the condemned.

The Supreme Court's Role

The surge in death sentences carried out is also linked to the posture of the US Supreme Court. The majority-conservative bench rejected all applications to halt an execution in 2025, a rare display of judicial disengagement.

This represents a shift from the court's historical role as a final avenue for appeals based on claims of innocence, rights-based arguments, or charges of excessive cruelty. "We’re now operating without a safety net," noted a law professor. "The judiciary are supposed to serve as a final check, but that stop gap has been removed."