American Executions Surged in 2025 to Peak in Over a Decade and a Half.

The number of executions in the US has dramatically increased in 2025, hitting a level not seen in 16 years. This sharp uptick is linked to a focused campaign to reinvigorate the death penalty, coupled with a notable shift in the stance of the US Supreme Court toward eleventh-hour pleas.

A Sobering Count: 47 Executions in a Single Year

A total of 47 men—each one were male—were executed by individual states maintaining the death penalty in 2025. This figure is nearly double the count from the previous year, constituting the most active period for capital punishment in the United States since 2009.

"The evidence shows that the death penalty in 2025 is growing less popular with the American people even as politicians schedule executions in search of waning political benefits."

An International Exception

This sharp increase further isolates the US from nearly all other advanced economies, almost none of which continue the practice. In recent years, only a handful of Asian nations have carried out executions among similarly developed states.

Contradictory Trends

The comeback of state killings clashes directly with broader patterns and current public sentiment. Over the past two decades, the use of the death penalty had been in a steady decrease. At the same time, surveys 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 oppose it.

Executive Action Sets the Tone

On his inauguration day back in office, the President issued an presidential directive titled "Reinstating Capital Punishment." This order sought to ensure that statutes permitting capital punishment were "respected and faithfully implemented," 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 anti-death penalty advocate.

A Surge in State Executions

The national initiative was echoed and amplified at the level of individual states. Florida became a particular extreme case, conducting 19 executions in 2025—a dramatic increase from just one the previous year. This broke the state's previous record.

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

Evolving Methods

As activity increased, some states adopted more controversial techniques. Louisiana ended a 15-year hiatus and followed another state's lead to use nitrogen gas as an means of execution. Observers reported the condemned individual visibly shook for multiple minutes during the process.

Meanwhile, 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 an instance, faulty targeting may have caused extended agony for the individual.

The Supreme Court's Role

The increase 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 rare display of judicial disengagement.

This represents a shift from the court's traditional function as a last resort for legal challenges based on claims of innocence, constitutional arguments, or allegations of cruel punishment. "We’re now operating without a safety net," noted a law professor. "The judiciary are supposed to serve as a backstop, but that safeguard has been removed."