Finally, a poll that gets it right!
Public polling on school choice over the last few years has been almost all meaningless because most pollsters refuse to accurately test the policies that have been put forward by the legislature. Many polls also (intentionally?) use various terms incorrectly.
For example, vouchers are not education savings accounts (ESA). Vouchers are only used for tuition and, generally, only at private schools. Education savings accounts can be used for any approved educational expense, such as tuition, tutoring, transportation, special needs therapies, books, or other materials, and can be used by any educational establishment willing to accept them.
That’s why school choice opponents insist on using the inaccurate term “vouchers” to describe ESA proposals. They know vouchers generally have less support because of their limited use.
But a new survey shows that might be backfiring on them.
A poll sponsored by the University of Houston and Texas Southern University defines vouchers and ESAs accurately and tests the proposals with Texans. It turns out Texans overwhelmingly approve of both.
65% of Texans support vouchers and 69% support ESAs for all parents, while only 33% and 30% oppose vouchers and ESAs respectively. Broken out by party affiliation, 73% of Republicans support vouchers, while even a majority – 55% – of Democrats support them. Significant majorities of Black, Latino, and white Texans also support vouchers/ESAs.
In fact, the only demographic for which a majority does not support vouchers/ESAs is white Democrats, the same group that supported segregation after the Civil War. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
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