Texas’s March Primaries: What’s at stake
The future of public education in Texas will be decided in the party primaries. The next month is particularly crucial.
Early voting for the March 5 primary will begin on February 20th. In the March 5 primary, public education is the primary policy issue on many ballots. In Texas, a candidate must win their primary with a majority of the vote (i.e. 50% +1). A race with multiple candidates must go to a runoff, which would be held on May 28th. In Texas, a person may vote in whatever party primary they wish so long as they stick with that party in the event of a runoff.
With a couple of noteworthy exceptions on the Democratic side, the overwhelming activity is in the Republican Party. That is because of a 63-21 split in the Republican Caucus of the Texas House. Sixty-three voted to create a voucher entitlement. Twenty-one voted for their public schools.
The Governor is attempting to defeat 16 of those 21 that are running for reelection. The risk of House Republican opposition to vouchers collapsing depends upon the number of incumbents that do not win reelection.
The reason the situation is so dire for public education is because of what a voucher is. A voucher is any diversion of public money for private education. The voucher bill debated over four special sessions takes money from rural and low-income schools and gives it to wealthy, suburban parents that already have children in private schools, disproportionately. It is a welfare program for the rich.
In Texas, we spend $6,160 per pupil in our public schools. HB 1 would have entitled those wealthy suburban parents to a check from the government for $10,500 per child. HB 1’s supporters would spend more for private school children than they would for a public school child. Despite rampant inflation and a budget surplus, the Governor has openly said that any more money for public schools would be vetoed unless the bill contained this welfare entitlement.
The Governor is raising a lot of money to purge the Republican Party of dissent. One Pennsylvania billionaire gave $6 million to privatize Texas schools. That was just one donation. Between the AFC Victory Fund, the Family Empowerment Coalition PAC, and the far right Texans United for a Conservative Majority, tens of millions are pouring into this primary.
Some candidates will try to convince voters that it’s a both and situation. They’ll say our economy is strong, and we can have more money for public schools and vouchers. Some political consulting firm made that up.
Appropriations are short-term. They last for two years. Someday, we will hit another bad economy — like in 2011. In 2011, Texas has a $27 billion shortfall, and cut $5 billion from public education.
Now imagine that zero-sum scenario, but with a subsidized industry and thousands of parents reliant on that entitlement check. Private schools can lobby, mobilize parents, and find legal loopholes to electioneer. Public schools cannot electioneer and voucher proponents are actively trying to ban their right to petition the state government.
The newly created class of wealthy welfare recipients would use your tax dollars to slowly bleed the public system until we have an even more unequal, two-tier education system. It would not happen overnight, but like the psychological metaphor of the frog in boiling water.
Constituents killed vouchers, but will they vote? That’s the question of March 5, 2024.
Not all Texas voters live in a critical district. Voters in those 16 House districts (out of a total of 150 House districts) will have a disproportionate say. There are also a number of other districts — in both parties — where candidates have differing positions on vouchers.
To find out if you live in one of these districts, follow these two steps.
- Find out who represents you.
- Check out our spreadsheet where our Public School Defenders action team is researching the candidates’ positions on vouchers.