The Political Cost of Opposing School Choice – By Letrisha Weber (Real Clear Education) / Dec 9, 2022
It was a shocking development in Pennsylvania politics. Democratic party candidate for governor, Josh Shapiro, despite holding a comfortable lead in polling over his Republican opponent, shook up the political landscape when he publicly issued his support for school choice.
If you aren’t familiar with Pennsylvania politics, Democratic governors have long cozied up to public school special interests, which are often sworn enemies of school choice initiatives, such as vouchers and charter schools. Now the governor-elect, Shapiro’s approach is a stark contrast to his Democratic predecessor, Tom Wolf.
In eight years, Wolf became the only governor never to visit a charter school. Pennsylvania’s largest public union representing teachers, the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA), gave Wolf $1.5 million for his re-election campaign on top of the $865,000 they already had given him.
