Speaking of the First Amendment: The School Choice Opportunity for Blue State Governors

We’ve frequently noted the popularity of school choice among the vast majority of Democratic voters, and asked when blue state governors will sign up for a national movement that is sweeping the states. Eighteen states now have some form of universal school choice. Most are red states, though some on that map are purple.
 
Now Corey DeAngelis, long-time advocate for school choice, challenges Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) and Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-IL) to take the plunge. Both men supported school choice in their 2022 gubernatorial campaigns. Both had their hands tied by state legislatures in which the influence of the change-nothing leadership of the teachers’ union blocked school choice. DeAngelis writes in The Wall Street Journal:
 
“The federal tax-credit program bypasses this problem entirely, empowering these governors to expand school choice unilaterally. By opting in, they can deliver scholarships to help their constituents afford private school tuition – opportunities Messrs. Shapiro and Pritzker valued for their own children. And it takes no additional spending out of the state budget …

“Democratic governors who might wish to opt out face a political dilemma. Because the federal program allows donations from all states, residents of Pennsylvania and Illinois can still contribute to scholarship organizations and receive a dollar-for-dollar tax credit, even if their governors opt out of allowing residents to receive the scholarships. If Messrs. Shapiro and Pritzker opt out, they’ll not only deny their states’ families access to scholarships for private schools, but also send their residents’ tax dollars to other states like Texas or Florida while getting nothing in return. But if they opt in, they could inspire other blue-state governors to follow, expanding a nationwide movement for school choice.”

Strong bipartisan support among voters for school choice suggests that opting-in to donations would be a show of leadership by these governors, both of whom are believed to harbor presidential ambitions for 2028.

School choice is simply too popular among the American people to be treated as a partisan issue. Studies show that school choice, far from degrading public schools, provides competition that improves their performance. Millions of parents also support it for the same reason we do as a non-partisan First Amendment organization: By allowing parents to choose the best school for their children, they can express their values across generations, whether in faith-based schools, or secular schools devoted to the arts or sciences.
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