{"id":1664339,"date":"2022-09-29T11:17:51","date_gmt":"2022-09-29T15:17:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1664339"},"modified":"2022-09-29T11:19:25","modified_gmt":"2022-09-29T15:19:25","slug":"parents-rights-in-education-won-the-gop-virginia-in-2021-and-it-can-win-them-the-2022-midterms-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/parents-rights-in-education-won-the-gop-virginia-in-2021-and-it-can-win-them-the-2022-midterms-too\/","title":{"rendered":"Parents\u2019 Rights In Education Won The GOP Virginia In 2021, And It Can Win Them The 2022 Midterms Too"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">38<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fparents-rights-in-education-won-the-gop-virginia-in-2021-and-it-can-win-them-the-2022-midterms-too%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1664339&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><\/div>\n<p>Nearly a year ago, then-Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin shocked Washington, D.C.\u2019s pundit class after beating out Democrat Terry McAuliffe to become Virginia\u2019s 74th governor. <\/p>\n<p>In what should have been a cinch election for Democrats in a state Joe Biden won by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/2020-election\/results\/virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">10 points<\/a> in the 2020 presidential election, Republicans ended up sweeping every major statewide office and regaining control of the Virginia House of Delegates. To say that the upset put most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/epolls\/2021\/governor\/va\/virginia_governor_youngkin_vs_mcauliffe-7373.html#polls\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cprofessional\u201d pollsters to shame<\/a> is an understatement.<\/p>\n<p>While Youngkin\u2019s victory could have been in part due to growing electoral dissatisfaction with Biden\u2019s presidency, the major shift toward Republicans among Virginia voters is far more likely due to Youngkin\u2019s embrace of culture war issues \u2014 specifically, education. <\/p>\n<p>When The Daily Wire dropped a <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/10\/13\/loudoun-county-dad-smeared-as-domestic-terrorist-says-school-covered-up-daughters-rape-by-boy-in-girls-bathroom\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">bombshell report<\/a> during the waning weeks of the election cycle revealing that the Loudoun County School Board had covered up a female student\u2019s alleged rape at the hands of a \u201cgender-fluid\u201d boy in a school bathroom, Youngkin made the calculated decision to ignore the GOP\u2019s old school, \u201cIt\u2019s the economy, stupid!\u201d pundit class and instead keep parental rights in education a central focus of his campaign.<\/p>\n<p>Whether it was opposing the left\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/10\/14\/explosive-documents-prove-mcauliffes-administration-pushed-crt-in-virginia-schools\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">push for critical race theory in Virginia\u2019s education system<\/a> or schools <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/09\/28\/media-think-high-schoolers-skipping-class-is-more-newsworthy-than-a-war-on-parents\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">allowing<\/a> boys purporting to be girls to use women\u2019s locker rooms and bathrooms, Youngkin\u2019s foray into the state\u2019s culture war allowed him and state Republicans to ride to victory on Election Day. The election didn\u2019t just give Virginia its first GOP governor in nearly a decade; it gave Republicans a palpable strategy for winning statewide races in Democrat strongholds.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newswars.com\/videos-msnbc-immediately-declares-youngkin-a-racist-after-virginia-victory\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">attempts<\/a> by America\u2019s media propagandists to brand Youngkin\u2019s win as some sort of racist backlash by white voters, the stark reality brought to light in the Virginia contest is that the vast majority of parents \u2014 regardless of their backgrounds \u2014 want their child to receive a quality education in a safe environment where they, the parents, are granted insight into the school\u2019s policies and curricula. And given that most Democrats often bend to the will of the teachers unions funding their campaigns and fighting against academic transparency, the issue remains a slam dunk win for Republicans.<\/p>\n<h2>The Strategy Spreads<\/h2>\n<p>As the country marches closer to Election Day 2022, several Republican candidates running for office in more Democrat-friendly states have taken notice of the electoral success achieved through parental rights advocacy and are working to capitalize on such issues in the final weeks of their respective campaigns.<\/p>\n<p>After a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.city-journal.org\/michigan-education-department-radical-gender-teacher-training?wallit_nosession=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">blistering report<\/a> came out revealing that Michigan\u2019s Education Department is encouraging teachers to \u201csexually transition\u201d students behind their parents\u2019 backs, GOP gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon has decided to make education a major focal point of her campaign to unseat the state\u2019s Democrat governor, Gretchen Whitmer. In addition to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tudordixon.com\/media\/gretchen-whitmer-hides-behind-bureaucrats-issues-flimsy-platitudes-while-tudor-stands-behind-parents\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">calling out<\/a> Whitmer for her \u201cembrace of radical gender and race activism,\u201d Dixon <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tudordixon.com\/media\/tudor-dixon-calls-for-resignation-of-state-superintendent-rice-blasts-whitmers-silence\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">has<\/a> \u201cdemanded that State Superintendent Rice resign immediately\u201d based on the reported actions of the Education Department.<\/p>\n<p>On Wednesday, the Michigan GOP gubernatorial nominee also released a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tudordixon.com\/media\/tudor-dixon-we-must-remove-classroom-instruction-of-sexual-orientation-gender-identity-for-grades-k-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">proposal<\/a> known as the \u201cAge-Appropriate Classroom Instruction Act,\u201d which would \u201crequire school districts to ensure that their schools do not provide classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade or in any manner that is not age or developmentally appropriate.\u201d The measure is modeled after Florida\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/04\/20\/floridas-parental-rights-law-has-turned-leftists-into-a-sad-frustrated-mess\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">recently enacted<\/a> \u201cParental Rights in Education\u201d bill.<\/p>\n<p>In Maine, former governor and Republican gubernatorial candidate Paul LePage is also focusing on parental rights heading into the final weeks of election season. Most recently, the Maine Republican released his \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/govlepage.com\/studentplan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Parents Bill of Rights<\/a>,\u201d which aims to bring greater transparency to schools\u2019 curricula and increase the role of parents in their children\u2019s education.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe want to make sure that the money follows the student. It\u2019s critical that the parents, the kids, choose where their kids are going to go to school,\u201d LePage <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-us\/news\/us\/lepage-unveils-parents-bill-of-rights-in-new-education-plan\/ar-AA120pXK\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">told<\/a> a local Maine news outlet. \u201cI don\u2019t care whichever school is best for the child to learn, the student to learn, is where we have to go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2022\/09\/21\/maine-democrat-gov-mills-education-program-teaches-that-maga-is-covert-racism-white-supremacy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">investigative report<\/a> from Breitbart News found that the Education Department of Maine\u2019s Democrat Gov. Janet Mills is actively referring to phrases such as \u201cMake America Great Again,\u201d or \u201cMAGA,\u201d as a form of covert racism and white supremacy. Other terms and phrases labeled as racist language include \u201cAll Lives Matter,\u201d \u201cpaternalism,\u201d \u201ccolorblindness,\u201d and more.<\/p>\n<h2>Education Is a Winning Issue<\/h2>\n<p>While the state of the country\u2019s economy and skyrocketing inflation are certain to be major campaign issues for Republicans this fall, they cannot be the <em>only<\/em> issue. If Youngkin\u2019s victory taught conservatives anything, it\u2019s that restoring some semblance of sanity to America\u2019s institutions isn\u2019t achieved by running away from culture war issues, but by embracing them. <\/p>\n<p>Following the Youngkin model on education should become a top priority for Republicans running in competitive states across the country, especially in those deemed \u201ctoss-ups\u201d or \u201cDemocrat-leaning.\u201d The educational success and well-being of students is an issue that both cuts across party lines and forces Democrat politicians to show voters just how comfortable they are with schools hiding vital information about kids from their parents. <\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<p>\n  Shawn Fleetwood is a Staff Writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He also serves as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nearly a year ago, then-Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin shocked Washington, D.C.\u2019s pundit class after beating out Democrat Terry McAuliffe to become Virginia\u2019s 74th governor. In what should have<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1664339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1664339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1664339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1664339\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1664339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1664339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1664339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}