The News Tribune in Tacoma, Wash., reports that public charter school proponents in Washington State are gathering funds to defeat state Supreme Court Chief Justice Barbara Madsen, one of six judges who ruled in September 2015 that the state’s charter school law is unconstitutional.
Stand for Children Washington, a political group that supports charter schools and other educational issues, has so far spent $116,000 supporting Madsen’s opponent, Greg Zempel. That’s a hefty sum, considering Zempel’s campaign itself has been able to raise only about $38,000. Madsen’s has raised $30,000 so far.
One of Stand for Children’s biggest supporters is Connie Ballmer, wife of billionaire Steve Ballmer, who was previously Microsoft’s CEO. Connie Ballmer has given $500,000 to the group. Reed Hastings, who founded Netflix, and Vulcan Inc., a Seattle company owned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, have also donated heavily to the group.
Seven of the nine Washington State Supreme Court justices, including Madsen, got the maximum allowable financial donation in their last campaigns from the Washington Education Association, the state’s largest teachers’ union. The maximum donation allowed is $2,000 per election cycle. The union’s super PAC also endorsed Madsen in the 2016 cycle.
Charter schools in Washington have had an interesting fate, narrowly winning a referendum in 2012 that allowed their creation. That law was then ruled unconstitutional by the state Supreme Court in September 2015, but in March the state legislature passed a new charter school law that should address the court’s constitutional concerns.
Now, roughly 1,100 students attend eight public charter schools in Washington, with three more set to open in 2017.
Still, the new law is expected to end up in court again. That’s why charter supporters find the state Supreme Court to be so important.
Charter schools are publicly funded and do not charge tuition. Compared to traditional public schools, charters have more independence and flexibility in their operations and curricula, which is why many families find charters desirable. They are open to all students, but they often don’t have enough space to meet demand. In that case, they use a random lottery system to determine admission.
Jason Russell is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
