D.C. voters had a philosophical question about public education to answer at the polls Tuesday: Did they want candidates who would more likely be fervent advocates of the traditional public school system, or those who would bolster public charter schools?
The usually sleepy races for the D.C. State Board of Education turned into a fight over the future of public education, with candidates backed by the teachers union facing off against contenders supported by a powerful charter advocacy organization.
Voters gave a resounding answer: Three of the four seats on the ballot went to candidates who were backed by the teachers union and were portrayed as proponents of traditional public schools. And they achieved substantial victories, vanquishing their opponents by double-digit margins.
