It was unlikely we would be able to vaporize it in one fell swoop. School choice has been around for decades, but it focuses mainly on choices within public school systems magnet or charter schools. Few families have received government money to send children to private schools. The issue remains among education's most emotional. Supporters argue that poor children, like their more-affluent peers, deserve a way out of troubled public schools.
Foes contend vouchers help few children and drain money from public schools.
In 1972, Maryland voters rejected a plan to fund private educations. California and Michigan have now rejected similar measures twice at the polls. Voters in Oregon, Colorado, and the District of Columbia defeated tax-credit plans for private schooling. Exit polls show that almost all demographic groups do, except for people identifying themselves as Republican or as politically conservative. The poor black and Hispanic voters that voucher backers contend are more likely to be victims of bad schools also strongly oppose vouchers.