Texas American Federation of Teachers

10/27/2024 | News release | Archived content

Oct. 25, 2024: Your vote, your voice

Friday, Oct. 25, 2024

Your vote, your voice.

The presidential election, along with all other consequential down-ballot races in Texas, is happening now. It ends Nov. 5. And it is taking place in a state where:

  • Public schools are struggling to survive without any new funding from the state since 2019.
  • A flurry of bad bills from the 88th Legislature are now law, infringing on the freedom to learn and threatening our neighborhood schools.
  • Constantly disrespected by those in power, dedicated teachers and school staff are streaming for the exits.
  • Our governor is waging war on legislators from his own party who stood against his school privatization schemes.

If this state's 700,000 public school employees - along with their higher education and retired peers - don'tvote, this crisis will not change.

Will you join the 17,323 Texas AFT members who have cast their ballot already in this election? Make your plan to vote and remember that this weekend is the only weekendto vote before Election Day.

In this week's Hotline:

  • Former President Donald Trump wants to distance himself from Project 2025 - while he promotes its policy goals on TV.
  • We look at another key race on this year's ballot: Texas Senate District 27, where public school ally Sen. Morgan LaMantia is fending off a big-money challenge.
  • This weekend, our members across the state are marching to the polls together at several events!
  • The number of public service workers (including educators) who have received student debt cancellation from the Biden Administration is now 1 million.

- Project 2025



Trump's Plan to Defund Public Schools: Project 2025's Dangerous Blueprint

With the Election Day just 12 daysaway, former President Donald Trump's potential return to power brings with it the unsettling reality of Project 2025. This far-right manifesto threatens to dismantle public education as we know it with a 992-page agenda, titled "Mandate for Leadership," that was developed by the conservative Heritage Foundation.

- Election



Election 2024 Spotlight: Re-Electing a Champion of Smaller Class Sizes, School Mental Health Resources in SD 27

As the 2024 election season heats up, Sen. Morgan LaMantia (D-Brownsville) stands out as a dedicated advocate for public education who has consistently prioritized the needs of students, teachers, and families. LaMantia's commitment to strengthening public education has earned her Texas AFT COPE's endorsement.

- Event

This Weekend, March to the Polls with Texas AFT Local Unions





Saturday, Oct. 26 | 12:30-1 p.m.



Saturday, Oct. 26 | Noon-12:30 p.m.



Saturday, Oct. 26

10-10:30 a.m.



Saturday, Oct. 26 10 a.m.-noon





Saturday, Oct. 26

9 a.m.-2 p.m.

RSVP

- Event



With special guests state Rep. Mihaela Plesa and state Rep. Julie Johnson

Tuesday, Oct. 29

6-7 p.m. CT

- Student Debt



Biden Administration Announces That 1 MillionPublic Service Workers' Debt Was Cancelled

Recommended Reading

Education news from around the state and nation that's worth your time.

Finally, This Election Season, Child Hunger is on the Table. A new government report shows 19.2% of children lived in food-insecure households in 2023, the second consecutive yearly increase following a 15-year low in 2021, when just 10.2% of children lived in food-insecure households. The spikes came as pandemic-era policies expired. This is unacceptable, especially when the U.S. has the tools to end child hunger. (The 74 Million, Oct. 20)

We fight book bans in Texas. This county's latest move stunned us. The Texas Freedom to Read Project is a parent-led organization that collaborateswith local residentsto combat censorship attemptsacross our state. Although we are frequentlydisheartened by these attempts, rarely are we surprised. But a decision made this month in a county near Houston left us stunned. The Montgomery County Commissioners Court ordered librarians there to reclassify the nonfiction children's book "Colonization and the Wampanoag Story" as fiction. (MSNBC, Oct. 19)

Five races for the Republican-dominated State Board of Education to watch this year. Voters will decide the outcomes of five competitive Texas State Board of Education races this November, with some challengers hoping to shake up the curriculum-setting body they say has shifted too far into party politics. The stakes of the board races are especially high this year, as the group's responsibilities in the next year could include, among other tasks, revising Texas' social studies curriculum. (The Texas Tribune, Oct. 18)