COMMENTARY: Democrats embrace private school choice

For decades, Democrats held an unshakable grip on the issue of education, enjoying a double-digit advantage over Republicans in voter trust. Education was their turf and their electoral stronghold. However, the ground has shifted, and the dam is breaking.

In a historic first, Democrats for Education Reform, a group long tied to public school reforms such as charter schools, last week embraced private school choice — vouchers, education savings accounts and tax credits. This move is a tectonic shift in education politics, driven by an apparent reality: The political winds have changed, and bipartisan support for school choice is surging.

The numbers tell a compelling story. Two nationwide polls by AtlasIntel before the November 2024 election showed Donald Trump beating Kamala Harris on education. Even more striking, Trump won parents’ vote by a commanding 9 points, fueled by his relentless campaign for school choice and parental rights. Parents, frustrated with the one-size-fits-all education system, are no longer reflexively siding with Democrats. They want options, and they’re rewarding politicians who deliver.

This shift has been building for years. In 2021, Virginia’s gubernatorial race became a bellwether. Republican Glenn Youngkin defeated former Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat, with education as the No. 2 issue. Youngkin beat McAuliffe by 6 points among voters who prioritized education, a stunning upset in a Democratic-leaning state.

McAuliffe’s infamous debate misstep — “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach” — ignited parental outrage, while Youngkin’s focus on parental rights resonated. That race was a wake-up call: education was no longer a Democratic lock.

The trend has intensified. A 2022 poll by DFER found that likely voters in congressional battleground districts no longer trusted Democrats over Republicans on education issues, a historic reversal. By 2024, another DFER poll confirmed voters no longer saw Democrats as the party that would educationally prepare kids for future economic success.

Adding fuel to the fire, a 2023 RealClear Opinion Research poll revealed that support for school choice transcends party lines. Remarkably, 66 percent of Democrats — nearly a two-thirds’ supermajority — backed school choice, alongside strong Republican and independent support. This broad, bipartisan enthusiasm underscores why DFER’s pivot to school choice is so significant.

Vouchers, education savings accounts, and tax credits — once vilified by Democrats as betrayals of public education — are now part of their reform agenda. This turnaround happened because the political calculus has flipped, and Democrats can no longer ignore the growing demand for educational freedom.

In “The Parent Revolution,” I argue that the more Republicans champion parental rights as a political winner, the more untenable it becomes for Democrats to oppose it. Republicans have seized the moment, pushing policies that empower families to choose the best education for their kids. Sixteen red states have passed universal school choice laws since 2021, creating a domino effect. Democrats are starting to follow, not out of ideology but out of political survival.

The fight is far from over. Unions will resist this shift. With deep pockets and deeper influence, they’ll fight to preserve their control over the school system. The unions are increasingly out of sync with the public. When a group such as DFER starts advocating for private school choice, it’s a sign the unions’ grip is slipping.

Republicans deserve credit for leading the charge. By making parental rights a core platform issue, they’ve forced Democrats to confront their vulnerabilities on education. Trump’s 2024 campaign, with its laser focus on school choice, proved that this issue is a political juggernaut. Some Democrats, to their credit, are starting to adapt. DFER’s embrace of private school choice is a bold step, one that could inspire more Democrats to break ranks with the status quo.

The lesson is clear: When parents demand change, politicians listen. The parent revolution is real, and it’s reshaping the political landscape. Democrats who ignore this shift risk irrelevance; those who embrace it could help forge a new consensus around educational freedom. The dam is breaking, and the flood of support for school choice, backed by voters across party lines, is just beginning.

For too long, the education establishment has called the shots. Families are taking back control, and Democrats are getting on board. The future of education is choice, and that future is now.

Corey DeAngelis is a senior fellow at the American Culture Project and a visiting fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.