In a break from Democrats’ typical political position, one Democratic group, Democrats for Education Reform, is pushing the party to embrace school vouchers.
The push comes after Congress included a provision in President Donald Trump’s budget that will create the first national private school choice program, and Democratic led states are weighing participation. States must opt in to the new voucher program, which allows taxpayers to make donations to nonprofit scholarship-granting organizations, which are then fully credited back to them on their federal taxes. The program will go into effect in 2027, and Democrats for Education Reform is advocating that blue states opt in.
The group’s chief executive, Jorge Elorza, the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, argued that vouchers are popular with many working-class black and Latino voters, voting blocs with which Trump made inroads in the 2024 election.
“This is literally free money that is broadly supported by the majority of voters who have steadily drifted away from the party. It just makes sense,” he said at a Democratic Governors Association meeting in Madison, Wisconsin, last week.
Historically, Democrats have aligned with teachers’ unions and opposed subsidies for private schools, and many Democratic Governors haven’t announced if they will opt in.
“The Governor is committed to ensuring that every student in Maryland has the best education possible,” a spokesperson for Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD) previously told the Washington Examiner. “The Trump Administration’s approach to this issue has never been tried before. We are evaluating all of the options to ensure Maryland students have the best opportunities to succeed.”
The offices of Govs. Josh Green (D-HI), Josh Shapiro (D-PA), and Ned Lamont (D-CT) sent similar statements.
Democrats for Education Reform used to play an influential role in electing school board members and state lawmakers in favor of the education reform agenda, according to Chalkbeat. The group is also allied with Arne Duncan, the former secretary of education under former President Barack Obama, who is working as a consultant for them, according to the New York Times.
In recent years, the group has seen numerous people part with it and has closed many local chapters.
Teachers’ unions, which are also closely aligned with Democratic governors, have pushed back on Democrats for Education Reform.
BLUE STATES UNCERTAIN IF THEY WILL OPT IN TO FEDERAL SCHOOL VOUCHER PROGRAM
“Vouchers are a vehicle to abandon public education,” said Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, the nation’s second-largest teachers’ union.
School vouchers are already used in several Republican-led states, but their effectiveness is highly debated. Democratic-led states have not indicated if they will take part in the federal program in 2027.