Kansas Democrats predict ‘worse outcomes’ with school choice – but is that true?

A Kansas Democrat leader claims school choice is “extremist,” leads to “worse academic outcomes” and only benefits the rich.

But are any of those claims true?

Not according to the evidence.

“Kansas students deserve fully funded public schools,” Cindy Holscher, Democrat Senate Minority Whip and gubernatorial candidate posted on X Jan. 29, “not voucher programs that lead to worse academic outcomes. I’m fighting back against extremists in the legislature pushing yet another scheme to funnel your tax dollars to the wealthiest 1%.”

She was responding to a post by leading national school choice advocate Corey DeAngelis, who noted Kansas is nearly alone in the Midwest in not offering its families the new federal school choice tax credits passed by Congress last year.

“Kansas is sticking out like a sore thumb,” DeAngelis opined.

Moreover, evidence points to Holscher’s claims being untrue:

Extremist?

Polls actually indicate the exact opposite of Holscher’s contention that support for school choice is “extremist.” Indeed, opposition to it appears extreme, according to Google:

“National polls consistently show strong, broad, and often majority support for school choice across the U.S., with recent data from 2025 and 2026 indicating around 60-80% of Americans and even higher percentages of parents favor various choice programs like Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) and vouchers, seeing it as a bipartisan issue important for diverse demographics …

“A 2025 poll found 73% of voters believe choice should be open to all …”

Worse academic outcomes? Only benefits “the wealthiest 1%”?

• A 2025 study showed the Ohio school choice program is actually producing better outcomes for students. It found school choice scholarship recipients were 15% more likely to attend college than public school students, and were more likely to graduate.
• A 2025 report out of Wisconsin showed better outcomes for less money at private schools in that state’s choice program.
• A 2024 report from the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) found that low-income achievement gaps were reduced by 25-40% over a decade as charter school enrollment grew.

Meanwhile, one report indicates safety – one very important outcome – is a big reason parents move their kids from public schools.

Yet, Democrats in Kansas – led by Gov. Laura Kelly, who has declined to opt the state’s families into President Trump’s new federal tax credits for school choice – are using unfounded talking points to leave money on the table that could be making education freedom available to the very students who can’t afford it.