If you’re looking for a simple number, it’s 27. But honestly, that "27" is a bit of a lie. It’s the kind of technicality that makes legal experts roll their eyes because, in the real world, the practice of capital punishment is a shrinking island. As of January 2026, the map of the United States is a patchwork of states that want to speed up executions, states that have banned them entirely, and a weird middle ground where the law says "yes" but the governor says "no."
You’ve probably seen the headlines. One week, a state is testing a new execution method like nitrogen gas; the next, another state is dismantling its death row. It’s chaotic.
Breaking Down the 2026 Numbers
Right now, 27 states retain the death penalty on their books. However, only about half of those actually use it. The other 23 states (plus Washington D.C.) have completely abolished it. Virginia was the most recent major shift, getting rid of it in 2021, which was a huge deal because they used to be one of the most prolific executioners in the country.
But here is where it gets tricky. Out of those 27 "death penalty states," several are under a moratorium. This basically means the law exists, but the person in charge—the Governor—has officially hit the pause button.
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- California: They have the largest death row in the country (over 600 people), but Governor Gavin Newsom issued a moratorium years ago. They are even moving people off death row and into the general prison population.
- Pennsylvania and Oregon: Same deal. The law is there, but nobody is being marched to the chamber.
- Ohio: They have what’s called an "unofficial moratorium." Governor Mike DeWine has basically stopped executions because the state can't find a reliable way to do lethal injection that doesn't violate the Constitution.
So, if you subtract the states with moratoriums, you’re left with roughly 21 states where an execution is actually a functional possibility. And even in those 21, most of the action is concentrated in just a few places like Texas, Florida, and Oklahoma.
How Many US States Have Death Penalty Laws That Are Actually Active?
In 2025, we saw a massive spike in executions, mostly driven by Florida. Governor Ron DeSantis signed several laws to speed up the process and even allowed for non-unanimous juries to recommend death. It’s a complete 180 from the national trend. While most of the country is moving away from the practice, Florida carried out 19 executions in 2025 alone. That’s nearly 40% of the entire country's total for the year.
The geography of the death penalty is becoming incredibly regional. If you live in the Northeast, the death penalty basically doesn't exist. There hasn't been an execution there in decades. In the West, it’s mostly a stalemate. The South and parts of the Midwest are where the "active" states live.
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The New Methods: Nitrogen and Firing Squads
One reason the numbers are so weird is that states are struggling to get the drugs for lethal injection. Pharmaceutical companies don't want the bad PR, so they’ve cut off the supply. This led to some "creative" and controversial legislation in late 2025 and early 2026.
- Nitrogen Hypoxia: Alabama started this, and now Louisiana and Arkansas have joined in. It involves breathing pure nitrogen through a mask. It’s been described by some officials as "flawless," but witnesses at recent 2025 executions reported seeing prisoners struggle.
- The Firing Squad: Idaho made the firing squad its primary method of execution, effective July 2026. South Carolina also used it in 2025 for the first time in fifteen years.
- Lethal Gas and Electrocution: North Carolina recently lifted bans on these older methods as backups.
It’s a bit of a "back to the future" moment for the legal system. States are literally dusting off 19th-century methods because the 21st-century ones are too hard to source.
Why the Number of States is Likely to Change
Public opinion is at a 50-year low. According to Gallup's late 2025 polling, only about 52% of Americans support the death penalty. Among people under 35, the majority actually oppose it. This shift in the "vibe" of the country is starting to show up in jury boxes.
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In 2025, more than half of all capital juries chose life without parole instead of death. That's a massive shift. Even in "red" states, juries are becoming more hesitant. They see the reports of exonerations—over 200 people have been cleared from death row since the 70s—and they're worried about making a mistake.
The Federal Factor
We also have to talk about the federal government. In early 2025, a new executive order pushed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty more aggressively, especially in cases involving the killing of police officers. This creates a weird tension where a state might not have the death penalty, but the federal government can still come in and seek it for a crime committed within that state’s borders.
Actionable Insights for 2026
If you are tracking this for research or advocacy, the "27 states" figure is your starting point, but it's not the whole story. To stay accurately informed, look at these three indicators:
- Check for "De Facto" Moratoriums: States like Nevada and Montana haven't executed anyone in nearly 20 years. They are "death penalty states" in name only.
- Watch the Courts: Keep an eye on the 114th District Court in Texas or the Florida Supreme Court. This is where the battle over "botched" executions and new methods like nitrogen gas is actually being fought.
- Monitor Legislative Sessions: States like Indiana and Ohio are currently debating bills that could either expand or totally abolish the practice by the end of 2026.
The landscape is shifting faster than the maps can keep up. For now, the US remains a nation deeply divided, with one half of the country treating the death penalty as a relic of the past and the other half trying to find new ways to keep it alive.
To get a real-time view of which states are moving toward abolition versus those scheduling new dates, you should monitor the monthly execution schedules published by the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC). They track not just the law, but the actual warrants being signed. As of mid-January 2026, there are 38 people scheduled for execution over the next few years, but history tells us many of those will be stayed by eleventh-hour court appeals. Regardless of where you stand on the ethics, the logistical reality is that capital punishment in America is becoming rarer, more expensive, and increasingly confined to a handful of specific zip codes.