Young Educators Run for Office

At 20 years old, Kevin J. Lopez Cruz is balancing college classes, campaign events, and a future he once imagined would unfold entirely in higher education.

“I never wanted to run for anything,” says Lopez Cruz, an English major at Bowie State University, in Maryland, and 
an NEA aspiring educator. “I always wanted to be a professor.”

But as he watched political decisions shape his community in Prince George’s County, he decided waiting wasn’t an option.

In June, when voters elect­ed Lopez Cruz to the county’s Democratic Central Committee, he became the youngest Latino Democrat elected in the state’s history.

A new generation

Lopez Cruz is an alum of NEA’s See Educators Run program, which trains educators and support staff to run successful cam­paigns and advocate for public education. It has helped launch a growing number of educators to enter politics, years­—or even decades—before conventional wisdom says they should.

Their campaigns come as the nation debates the age and health of its longtime political lawmakers. The average member of Congress is nearly 59 years old, and more than a dozen members over the age of 80 are seeking reelection, according to NBC News.

For Lopez Cruz and other educator candidates, running for public office is about expanding representation in government.

“I hope young people … look at me and say, ‘This is possible. I can do this,’” he says. “I really hope that message travels far and wide, showing people that these things are possible.”

Public service now

Unlike many candidates who spend years climbing political ladders, Chelsea Boor, 34, arrived through the classroom and also received training through See Educators Run.

A Spanish teacher in western Maryland, Boor decided to run for Allegany County Commissioner in the 2026 election so she could help shape the community her young children will inherit.

For more than a century, Boor’s family has called the county home, giving her deep roots in the community she’s now seeking to serve.

“I want my kids to not feel like they have to go somewhere else to get an education [or] a job,” she says.

Ideas across generations

Freddy De La Trinidad is a bilingual social studies teacher in Rockford, Ill. When he first decided to run for public office, with the help of See Educators Run, he was 31. Today, the 37-year-old is running for reelection, in November, as a Winnebago County Board member.

He decided to run because he wanted to represent his neighbors and believes “regular people,” such as teachers and nurses, should serve in public office.

As a younger elected official, he finds value in pairing fresh ideas with the institutional knowledge and experience of longtime leaders.

“We actually agree a lot more than we disagree,” De La Trinidad says of his colleagues of different generations. “We respect each other and are here for the betterment of our district. At the end of the day, that’s what we’re elected to do.”

Beyond the stereotype

One misconception about younger candidates, all three NEA members say, is that voters are primarily concerned about their age. On the campaign trail, they’ve found something different.

Boor says conversations rarely focus on how old she is. “People are more concerned with knowing I’m reliable and trustworthy,” 
she says.

Lopez Cruz says, “People are actually relieved that someone else is running for a change.”

For De La Trinidad, campaigning taught him that “people want to be heard,” regardless of a candidate’s age.

Should You Run for Office? 
Yes, you should. Go to nea.org/See-Educators-Run for support!