Behind the Headline: Seeking Allies, Teachers’ Unions Court GOP Too

On Top of the News
Seeking Allies, Teachers’ Unions Court GOP Too
New York Times| 9/25/12

Behind the Headline
The Long Reach of Teachers’ Unions
Education Next| Fall 2010

In this morning’s New York Times, Motoko Rich writes about the growth in donations made by teachers unions to support Republican candidates. Mike Antonucci had an article about the wide range of candidates and groups that teachers unions were supporting in the Fall 2010 issue of Ed Next. He wrote

If you think it’s far-fetched to suggest that a teachers union could play the role of political kingmaker, think again. The largest political campaign spender in America is not a megacorporation, such as Wal-Mart, Microsoft, or ExxonMobil. It isn’t an industry association, like the American Bankers Association or the National Association of Realtors. It’s not even a labor federation, like the AFL-CIO. If you combine the campaign spending of all those entities it does not match the amount spent by the National Education Association, the public-sector labor union that represents some 2.3 million K–12 public school teachers and nearly a million education support workers (bus drivers, custodians, food service employees), retirees, and college student members.

-Education Next

Last Updated

NEWSLETTER

Notify Me When Education Next

Posts a Big Story

Business + Editorial Office

Program on Education Policy and Governance
Harvard Kennedy School
79 JFK Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
Phone (617) 496-5488
Fax (617) 496-4428
Email Education_Next@hks.harvard.edu

For subscription service to the printed journal
Phone (617) 496-5488
Email subscriptions@educationnext.org

Copyright © 2024 President & Fellows of Harvard College