Voters choose a more affordable future, strong public schools and safer communities

WASHINGTON — On Election Day, voters sent an unequivocal message at the polls: Americans want a new direction that puts working families and students first. Across the country, they elected leaders committed to a more affordable future, stronger public schools, and safer schools and communities. Educators also helped deliver major electoral gains, shifting control of the U.S. Senate and House, holding or flipping key gubernatorial and state races, and winning important state chambers and legislative contests.

The following statement can be attributed to National Education Association President Princess Moss: 

“Across the nation, most Americans want the same thing — a more affordable future, strong public schools and safer communities. And they’re ready to slam the door on corruption and self-dealing. Tonight, voters came together across race, place and gender and sent a clear message and mandate: put working families, students and educators first and deliver for our communities, not billionaires and corporations.

“For NEA and its members, this election was about the second grader sitting in an overcrowded classroom, about the teacher working two jobs to make ends meet and the bus driver who can’t afford health care for her own kids. It’s about parents paying more for groceries, gas and school supplies, and still falling behind. It’s about students too afraid of masked immigration agents to go to school. We cannot afford to continue in this direction.

“Educators showed up in every corner of the country — in cities, suburbs, small towns and rural communities. Our 3 million members, from teachers and paraprofessionals to bus drivers and cafeteria workers, led the way by knocking on doors, making phone calls and talking with their neighbors on behalf of students and their families. The resounding winners in key races tonight were working families, public schools and democracy.

“Now we get to work. We stand ready to partner with anyone — regardless of political affiliation — who shares the same values as our educators, students and their families. This means stopping the dismantling of public education; standing against voucher schemes that drain resources from public schools that serve 90% of students; making sure that students and families have access to the services they rely on, such as food assistance programs; and creating schools and communities where every student feels safe and welcome. Americans voted on the issues that matter most to them. We’re ready deliver real results.” 

About NEA’s member-to-member voter turnout program. 

NEA runs one of the largest voter contact and turnout programs in the country.

NEA has nearly 3 million –members, with affiliates in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States. Nearly one in every 100 Americans is a member of the NEA. One in 40 voters is an NEA member. 

In the run-up to Election Day, NEA members dedicated their evenings and weekends to phone banking, knocking on doors, and texting for candidates who support students and public education. 

Educators, who are trusted messengers and reliable campaign volunteers, shared what they see in their classrooms every day: 

• Students and families struggling with the rising cost of groceries, gas and health care.
• Deep cuts to programs like SNAP and Medicaid are playing out in school cafeterias and nurses’ offices. 
• The fear and disruption that ICE actions bring into school communities.

At the same time, the Trump administration and its allies have pushed private school vouchers, rolled back workers' rights and tightened rules on voting. 

Programming note:

NEA President Princess Moss is available to elaborate on the role that educators played in this election cycle. Contact [email protected] or 202-491-9532. 

In the next few days, NEA will provide additional analysis on how its members voted in key elections as well as highlight the races — including those in which NEA members ran — that mattered to education voters from state houses to governorships to the U.S. Congress.