Education

News 9/News On 6 survey finds support for school choice

August 4, 2022

Brandon Dutcher

A new survey of likely Republican voters in Oklahoma shows very strong support for school choice. In the exclusive News 9/News On 6 statewide poll, respondents were asked:

• “Thinking about education in Oklahoma, school choice gives parents the right to use tax dollars associated with their child’s education to send their child to the public or private school which better serves their needs. Generally speaking, do you support or oppose the concept of school choice?” Fully 73% of Oklahoma Republicans support (50% “strongly” support) school choice, while 15% oppose.

This is not surprising. The Republican party platforms, both nationally and in Oklahoma, place a strong emphasis on parental choice in education, and Republican political leaders and candidates—including frontrunners Kevin Stitt and Ryan Walters—strongly support it. At the 2016 Republican National Convention, Donald Trump, Jr. (courtesy of his speechwriter F.H. Buckley) observed that public schools are “like Soviet-era department stores that are run for the benefit of the clerks and not the customers”—something that parents would eventually witness firsthand with prolonged school shutdowns. Buckley, in his new book Progressive Conservatism: How Republicans Will Become America's Natural Governing Party, makes a strong case for school choice.

But it’s not just Republicans. Surveys consistently show that support is widespread. Consider the latest monthly tracking poll (updated yesterday) commissioned by EdChoice and conducted by the firm Morning Consult. It finds that most Oklahomans (56%) would choose something other than a regular public school if given the choice. And they support letting the tax money follow the child:

• “An ‘education savings account’ in K–12 education—often called an ESA—establishes for parents a government-authorized savings account with restricted but multiple uses for educational purposes. Parents can then use these funds to pay for: school tuition; tutoring; online education programs; therapies for students with special needs; textbooks or other instructional materials; or save for future college expenses. In general, what is your opinion of education savings accounts (ESAs)?” Fully 68% of Oklahoma adults—and an overwhelming 77% of Oklahoma parents—support ESAs.