The teacher unions adopted a multi-million dollar political scheme early this year to target pro-school choice Republicans. The idea was to get scalps on the wall by defeating those who dared put kids ahead of the Union.

So far the plan has flopped. After Missouri dramatically expanded its school choice program so that student scholarships were available to families with incomes up to $166,500 a year, two GOP State House incumbents who opposed choice lost big time in their primaries. Even more importantly, the clear favorite to win the governorship is Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe who pledged to “continue to expand” the existing choice program.

In Tennessee, the legislature narrowly failed to pass a universal school choice law last year despite the backing of GOP Governor Bill Lee.

But Lee and other choice supporters vowed to make next year’s legislature more choice-friendly. Two anti-choice incumbents were defeated while the pro-choice incumbents targeted by teacher unions prevailed. Two choice supporters did lose their primaries but for reasons that had little to do with education. There is general agreement that Governor Lee’s choice plan now has a better chance of being enacted into law.

We are winning the school choice fight. Today, 24 states have education tax credit scholarship programs, while 20 have education voucher programs. Our 25 by 25 coalition – 25 school choice states by 2025 – is running a head of schedule. We could be up to 27 states with choice by the end of next year. The unions’ only hope is to buy the election for the Left – who staunchly opposes school choice for minority families.