The United States saw 20 executions this year, the fewest nationwide in 25 years. This number has dropped from 98 executions in 1999, coming as states have struggled to obtain lethal injection drugs and halted executions in the face of court rulings. 

Still, even as capital punishment has declined in both sentencing and practice, there were also signs this year of its persistence from lawmakers, judges and the public, reminders that the death penalty is far from fading away, reports the Washington Post.

The numbers this year are part of “a consistent long-term trend” with a number of explanations, said Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center. People in three states — Nebraska, Oklahoma and California — were given a chance to vote on the death penalty, and in all three cases, capital punishment won out.

As reported in The Washington Post.