(DailyVantage.com) – Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro has dropped his demands for school choice in Pennsylvania after pressure was mounted by teachers unions, including the Pennsylvania State Education Association, and other members of his party. His proposed $100 million school voucher program, which would have been included in the state budget, found support in the Republican state Senate but ended up faltering in the Democratic state House.
Democrats and other public school proponents have been disappointed with Gov. Shapiro’s proposal to create school vouchers in the state—a stance that is typically not held by Democrats and more likely to be a goal for Republican Governors. In a statement prior to folding on his school voucher implementation, Shapiro said, “I believe every child of God deserves a shot here in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. One of the best ways to guarantee their success is to make sure every child has a quality education.”
A recent Quinnipiac poll conducted in Pennsylvania shows a high job approval rate for Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, 57% approval to 24% disapproval. When broken down by party affiliation, Democrats have 84% approval to 4% disapproval, Independents have 53% approval to 24% disapproval, and Republicans have 41% disapproval to 34% approval, meaning that about 1 in 3 Pennsylvanian Republicans approve of Gov. Shapiro and only a plurality disapprove. However, another poll would need to be conducted that compared voter sentiment before and after the school voucher dustup in order to see if it had any effect on Shapiro’s approval rating.
Shapiro, elected by a margin of 14.8 points over Republican and Trump-endorsed candidate Doug Mastriano, will remain relevant in the news as his term as Governor continues. With Pennsylvania viewed generally as a tossup state that could be a pathway for Republicans to win the White House, it will be interesting to see any further news coming out of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that could impact the 2024 election.
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