Lessons from the Heartland: Kentucky folks say Public Dollars are for Public Schools

There was a big news story on Tuesday's Election night that you may not have heard about. 

"School Choice" initiatives were on the ballot in three states. Colorado and Kentucky voters said no to a constitutional amendment to allow public dollars to be used for private schools, and Red State Nebraska voters said yes to a repeal of the voucher program passed by their legislature. 

The Kentucky movement to keep public dollars in public schools is, I think, the most intriguing and relatable to what's ahead for Texas. 

The "School Choice" mantra has become a policy movement that has been adopted by Conservatives and the Republican Party at all levels. Donald Trump has even signaled that there may be school choice passed at the federal level during his new administration, and Project 2025 lists school choice as one of their policy reforms. So it would be easy for us all to believe that "school choice" is supported by the people who elect Republicans and voted for Trump. 

But that is not the case. In Red State Kentucky Trump won with 64% of the vote and at the same time those same voters said NO to a school choice referendum on a statewide ballot by a vote of 65%-35% and, it lost in every county in the State. And it wasn't complicated either. 
The "Yes" side presented the question in a way that was very favorable to their cause: "To give parents choices in educational opportunities for their children, are you in favor of enabling the General Assembly to provide financial support for the education costs of students in kindergarten through 12th grade who are outside the system of common (public) schools by amending the Constitution of Kentucky?" and they marketed the issue with yard signs that said "Putting Students First". 

The "no" side kept it simple, saying "Public funds are for public schools." And THIS is the message that won the day. 
In Colorado, a similar referendum also failed by a 52%-48% margin, and in rural, red Nebraska, they voted to repeal the "school choice" bill passed by their majority GOP legislature by a margin of 57%-43%. 

To this date, every effort to direct public dollars out of the public school system that has been taken to the voters for a statewide vote has failed. 
There is an important lesson to be learned by Texas Legislators through the experiences of these other states. 

First, there is no correlation between voter support for Republican candidates and voter support for vouchers. In fact, there you could argue there is disconnection. A large majority of voters who support Republican candidates at the same time voted against using public money for vouchers. 
The most likely reason for this is that opposition to vouchers or support for school choice are not moving issues for folks like the economy or immigration. And really, most people, especially in rural communities, actually like their schools so there's not a threat either way that moves them to vote for or vote against a candidate based on their position on vouchers and school choice. 

The second lesson is this; Texans deserve to have a real, honest conversation over the future of our public schools, which we have not yet had, legislators need to be statesmen, not politicians, and we need to take a real hard look at the education policies of this state. 
There is a national "conservative" school choice movement happening across America and the billionaires are backing it. Governor Abbott took upwards of $10 million from those out-of-state billionaires and used that money to defeat in the primaries independent, Rural Republicans who had voted to support their public schools and the families and students those schools serve. 

Abbott used this money to spread misinformation about those Rural Republican legislators, to question their character, and to lie about their conservative records. Due to Abbott's billionaire-backed smear campaign, we lost valuable House leaders and advocates for rural issues such as education, water, agriculture, healthcare, and local control. 

The sad reality is that in all the mail, all the TV commercials, all the text messaging, and all the speeches given during those primaries, Texans were not given an opportunity to understand either the pros or the cons of what vouchers, ESAs, or school choice would mean for all Texans. 
We know the disconnect exists and Texans should be allowed to weigh in on whether public money should be spent on private schools in Texas. 

So now is our chance. 

I have nothing to gain in staying the course on this mission. My daughter already graduated from a rural school and she's thriving at the University of Texas. But I care about the kids and the families in my community and the opportunities for ALL of the students in this state. 
Abbott says he has his votes to pass a school choice bill in Texas, and it's going to be a doozy they all say. They've warned anyone who opposes them to get ready because they are going to shove the worst thing possible down our throats. 

I say we let the people decide. Let "we the people", the Texans, vote on a Statewide Constitutional Ballot Proposition to allow the legislature to spend public dollars on private education. 

Education is too important an issue to get it wrong, and if taking public dollars out to provide school choice is as popular with Texans, as the Governor says it is, then what do we all have to lose? 

Suzanne Bellsnyder is the Editor for the Texas Rural Reporter and writes about policy issues that impact Rural Texans. Suzanne worked at the State Capitol as a Chief of Staff to a Texas Senator and now resides in Spearman Texas in the Panhandle. You can email her at newsletter@texasruralreport.com, follow her on Substack texasruralreporter.substack.com or visit www.texasruralreport.com for more rural Texas news.