Teaching Assistants' Association
UW- Madison
Spring Election Races on the Ballot
In the spring of 2009, two key races are on the ballot that will have big impacts on us as graduate student workers, unionists, and members of the UW community.
The State Superintendent of Public Instruction and State Supreme Court Justice both have a major impact on us, and it's vital we elect pro-labor, pro-education, and progressive candidates to those offices. Take a look below for more information on these races and why they are important.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction
The State Superintendent of Public Instruction is the highest elected office dealing with education in Wisconsin. This office is also the only elected member of the UW Board of Regents. The Superintendent of Public Instruction oversees the public education system from pre-Kindergraten through the K12 system through the universities and public college; in other words, public education from pre-K through PhD. A pro-labor, pro-education Superintendent means that we will see pro-student and pro-educator policies and a commitment to a truly public education system.
Elections for State Superintendent of Public Instruction are also about more than who oversees the education bureaucracy as a policy-maker: this election is also a referendum on the shape and nature of public education in Wisconsin. Should we invest in public education? Will we change the tax structure as needed to pay for it? Is the UW system worth investing in more deeply? These questions will be answered through this election in many ways. The Superintendent has a bully-pulpit and how this race turns out will be understood as something of a verdict on how our state wants public education to work for the next four years. So, it is vital that we elect a pro-labor, pro-education progressive as our next Superintendent of Public Instruction.
To find out who the TAA has endorsed, please contact Political Education Committee chair Peter Rickman.
State Supreme Court Justice
The State Supreme Court is the highest judicial body in Wisconsin. They are an appellate court like our U.S. Supreme Court that reviews and interprets the law. Wisconsin is one of many states who elects their Supreme Court Justices. This has meant that in the past few years, special interests who do not stand for working people like us have tried to buy off the Court. Because they know that the democratic process has led to an affirmation of progressive principles in other elections, they need to steal the Court to stop progress. The good legislation we get passed because we have built progressive majorities could be lost because of a bought-and-paid-for State Supreme Court.
This election will not only choose our next Supreme Court Justice and determine the shape of the court, it will also be a referendum on special interests in Wisconsin politics and the agenda of working people. That is why it is vital that we organize regular people like us to elect a progressive State Supreme Court Justice.
To find out who the TAA has endorsed, please contact Political Education Committee chair Peter Rickman.