NEA RA 2011: Early Endorsement of Barack Obama

First it is important to note that the leadership of NEA cannot endorse a presidential candidate. An endorsement for president must be voted on by the 8000+ delegates to the Representative Assembly. Historically this has been done at the RA in July prior to the election in November. This year, the PAC Council broke with tradition and recommended endorsing a candidate 16 months prior to the election.

So why the early endorsement? The reasoning provided by leadership was as follows: 1) becoming involved in a presidential race 4 months before an election is too late; 2) the NEA has a seat at the table that would be compromised if we did not take an active early roll in the campaign.

Personally, I was opposed to the early endorsement and spoke to it during a state caucus meeting (the proposed endorsement is not debated on the RA floor). I suggested that an early endorsement would weaken our leverage with respect to the many education policy disagreements that NEA has with the administration. I also questioned the wisdom of endorsing a candidate whose opponent is still unknown.

Our detractors will say that it was a forgone conclusion, that the NEA is simply a wing of the Democrat Party. Having witnessed the past few RA’s and worked with NEA staff, I don’t believe this to be the case. I believe the NEA leadership recognized that there was a small, but very real possibility that the delegates would not endorse Obama. They exhibited a full course press to encourage approval of the endorsement. They contacted delegates with information well in advance of the RA, they urged passage of a statement rebuking many of the administration’s education policies, and Vice President Biden personally addressed the assembly.

In the end, the Assembly voted to endorse Obama by 72%, the lowest percentage received for a presidential endorsement by the NEA RA in the last 25 years.

While I may be disappointed with the results, it is important keep things in perspective. The GOP will not have a presidential candidate for 2012 that will reflect our priorities for education. A message has been sent to the Obama administration that we take issue with their education policies. But perhaps most importantly, we need to keep in mind that most important decisions about education are not made in D.C., they are made in state capitals, in local board rooms, at sites, and yes, even some still made in the classroom. I will continue to work towards the day when the NEA RA can endorse a Republican Candidate. Until then, let’s keep the fight focused where it needs to be.