– Democrats should listen to their voters.
Given its history of bipartisan support from lawmakers, I was shocked when I learned that today, school choice receives most of its support from Republicans.
Despite the partisan fights we see in state legislatures, school choice had been a bipartisan issue with wide support from Democratic, Republican and independent voters.
A RealClear Opinion Research poll of 1,000 registered voters from June 27-30, 2023, found that 71% support school choice and only 13% oppose it. The measure is supported by 66% of Democrats, 80% of Republicans and 69% of independents.
As a former Democrat who advocates more education options, I see the sad reality that in my state of Nevada, not one elected Democrat openly supports school choice.
This is particularly frustrating because Democrats often talk about supporting minorities and the working class, yet they are not supporting educational freedom.
But was it always this way?
Since the 1960s, progressives in this country have advocated educational pluralism, and well-known Democratic civil rights activists supported school choice efforts.
Cesar Chavez, a Hispanic civil rights leader and Democrat, supported Escuela de la Raza Unida, a private school that emphasized Chicano culture. He said, “I’m convinced more and more that the whole question of public education is more and more not meeting the needs of the people, particularly in the case of minority group people.”
Rosa Parks was a product of private school education herself and a school choice supporter.
In the late 1990s, Parks and her foundation applied for a charter school in Detroit called the Rosa and Raymond Parks Academy for Self-Development.
She hoped the school would uplift Black students from low-income and high-crime neighborhoods. The school’s plan was to emphasize project-based, experiential learning. Unfortunately, despite her civil rights bona fides, the school was shot down by a hostile school board.
So why is school choice largely championed by elected Republicans today, when its history is as full of diverse stories and perspectives as the communities who support it nationwide?
The reason has nothing to do with improving education opportunities or outcomes for minorities and the working class.
Unfortunately, it comes down to the teachers unions and the campaign donations they wield.
The Democratic Party has historically aligned with public sector unions, which contribute heavily to Democrats’ political campaigns.
Unions account for 90% or more of PAC contributions made by education advocacy groups in state politics.
Democrats’ failure to embrace school choice hampers future generations of students who are in a learning crisis.
This is especially true for Hispanic students who are lagging behind their peers in math and reading by up to two years, according to scores on the National Assessment of Education Progress, which is often called the Nation’s Report Card.
If Democrats don’t get on board with giving families, especially students from low-income and underserved families, the chance to access high-quality education, the voters on whom they rely so heavily will continue to wake up and vote for those who will give them educational freedom.
Education is the only way we can break generational cycles of poverty and an education determined solely by the ZIP code a child’s parents can afford, which are issues that have deeply hurt Hispanics in this country.
I switched to the Republican Party, not because it is perfect, but because it openly supports giving access to educational freedom for my community, which can’t wait any longer for the teachers unions to fix a system that has been broken for decades.
I did it because I’m fed up with the status quo.
It’s time for Democrats to listen to their voters, especially Hispanic voters. Voters are demanding school choice. The future of our students depends on bipartisan cooperation to create an education system that can truly serve all families.
Valeria Gurr serves as a senior fellow with the American Federation for Children.
