North Pima News

Arizona Rep. Rachel Jones vows to protect education savings accounts (ESAs) in Arizona following the Pima County Democratic Party's revealed plan to eliminate school choice, as indicated in a since-deleted post on the X platform.

"Over my dead body. Oh, and by the way, guess who's the newest member of the House Education Committee?", said Rachel Jones.

"Let's make this a goal here in Arizona. Let's kill school choice-- send it to the grave," said the Pima County Democratic Party's post. The organization was responding to breaking news that the state of Illinois had discontinued its school choice program, clearly expressing their desire to do the same thing in Arizona, which was shared by Arizona Senator Justine Wadsack, according to the X platform.

"Pima County Democratic Party just exposed their radical agenda against children & parents rights!" declared Wadsack in her post. "Democrats want to 'Kill School Choice' which forces children to attend failing D & F rated public schools." Wadsack went on to describe state statistics, alleging that most public school students cannot perform at grade level in math or English, according to the X platform.

Arizona continues to lead as number 1 for education choice in the country for two consecutive years and secures number 2 spot for overall education freedom. The state fosters diverse learning environments, including private, charter, homeschooling, and district schools. Arizona provides ESAs for all grades and provides accessibility for all families. The ESA program enrollment stands at 70,000 students—surpassing all other states—according to Goldwater Institute.

The Arizona ESA program introduced initially in 2011 covered just 23% of students with stringent criteria including those with disabilities and wards of court among others. A recent comprehensive school choice bill significantly broadened ESA access making it available universally according to Kindled.

According a survey commissioned by 'yes. every kid. foundation' in Aug., 63% of Arizona voters favor school choice, with a notably higher support among Republicans (78%) and Independents (61%). Among Democrats, less than half (48%) favor school choice while 78% of parents support the program. However, Hobbs faces limited approval within the state at only 34%, according to yes. every kid. foundation.