Education

K-12 and higher education funding, school choice, curriculum, and student debt.

Explicit opposition (2)

Gloria Romero (Republican) — Lieutenant Governor

…ed up with how Democrats completely capitulated to the far-left woke wing of the party. I am a trailblazer in school reform and a strong supporter of parental rights and school choice. I am the author of the historic “Pa…

Tony Thurmond (Democratic) — Governor

…ur top three priorities, if elected? “ 1. Lead California’s fight against Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos’s anti-education agenda: I will fight to keep public schools public, protect California’s ban on school vouchers, and…

Mentions, position unclear (24)

Al Muratsuchi (No Party Preference) — Superintendent of Public Instruction

…vestments that create good paying jobs in the South Bay. Good schools As a former Assemblymember and Torrance School Board member, Al Muratsuchi has a record of delivering the funding our schools need to help our student…

Ami Sheth Sagel (Nonpartisan) — Superior Court of Orange County Office No. 41

…ion as an Associate at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York from 2006 to 2009. I graduated from Claremont McKenna College and earned my law degree from the University of Chicago Law School. I am proud to be an Orange County…

Anthony Rendon (No Party Preference) — Superintendent of Public Instruction

…wed by Rendon’s responses. Expand all | Collapse all Who are you? Tell us about yourself. California’s public education system changed my life. I wasn’t a good student in high school. I barely graduated and went on to wo…

Antonio Villaraigosa (Democratic) — Governor

…ce extends to every part of our great state so that we are making economic progress for everyone. Equality in Education With the passage of California’s Local Control Funding Formula and the new federal education law, Ev…

Ben Allen (Democratic) — Insurance Commissioner

…the culture of corruption in Sacramento and protecting taxpayers; Fixing our troubled schools; Making higher education more affordable; and Most importantly, making sure that all of our communities, every zip code, ever…

Chad Bianco (Republican) — Governor

…tor to create good-paying jobs and open avenues to ensure California as the innovation capital of the country EDUCATION Learning First Students deserve a world-class education that works for them Teaching Workforce Help…

Charles Pell (Nonpartisan) — Superior Court of Orange County Office No. 41

…lly, clearly explaining my rulings. I’m a United States Navy Veteran (Intelligence Officer) and former public-school teacher—experiences that strengthened my discipline, objectivity, and patience. USC Law graduate, bilin…

Donald P. (Don) Wagner (Republican) — Secretary of State

…s to ease current traffic congestion and plan for future traffic conditions. Support Irvine’s Schools. I know education policy and value our schools. In the Legislature, I served on the education committee, and am Chairm…

Eleni Kounalakis (Democratic) — Treasurer

…y for the 21st Century. We need to create more good-paying jobs while also protecting our environment. Higher Education: The cost of higher education is out of control. I have pledged to oppose all tuition increases for…

Gus Mattammal (No Party Preference) — Superintendent of Public Instruction

…? Tell us about yourself. I grew up in inner-city St. Louis and was the only kid on my block to graduate high school at all, let alone go to college. My neighborhood public high school had a 25% graduation rate for 25 ye…

Jane Kim (Democratic) — Insurance Commissioner

…ing people. I served for 12 years as an elected member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and Board of Education. I authored California’s first $15 minimum wage, passed the strongest tenant protections in the coun…

Janelle Kellman (Democratic) — Lieutenant Governor

…eutenant Governor holds significant power to shape our future. From serving as a voting member of the state’s university and college system boards to participating on the CA Ocean Protection Council and Coastal Commissio…

Katie Porter (Democratic) — Governor

…am fighting to lower costs and grow our economy, including by putting forward plans for free child care, zero tuition at our public universities, and eliminating state income tax for Californians making under $100,000. T…

Malia M. Cohen (Democratic) — Controller

…self. I was born and raised in San Francisco and attended public schools in the City. I earned a BA from Fisk University and a Master’s in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University. In 2010, I was elec…

Marjorie Mikels (Green) — Attorney General

…are you? Tell us about yourself. I am an attorney and peace advocate. I hold a Juris Doctor Degree from UCLA School of Law, where I excelled in Constitutional Law. I have decades of experience in fierce legal battles, s…

Matt Mahan (Democratic) — Governor

…ollapse all Who are you? Tell us about yourself. I was raised by working-class parents—a letter-carrier and a school teacher—who instilled in me the values of hard work and accountability. I attended Bellarmine College P…

Merritt Farren (Republican) — Insurance Commissioner

…tions were camping vacations in our beautiful State Parks and I attended terrific public schools through high school. University was at Stanford and I received my law degree at UC Berkeley. After I lost my home in the Pa…

Michael Tubbs (Democratic) — Lieutenant Governor

…g educational opportunity through building more student and workforce housing and lowering the cost of higher education What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about? I’ve championed guaranteed basic in…

Patrick Wolff (Democratic) — Insurance Commissioner

…s a two-time U.S. Chess Champion and international grandmaster. After graduating magna cum laude from Harvard University, he brought the strategic thinking and discipline he learned at the chessboard into the world of fi…

Robert Mestman (Nonpartisan) — Superior Court of Orange County Office No. 13

…Board of Directors of the California District Attorneys Association. I graduated cum laude from Northwestern University School of Law and also have an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management. I have been in public ser…

Shari Freidenrich (Nonpartisan) — Orange County Treasurer-Tax Collector

…st a dime of principal in the last 30 years I have worked for you. I am the banker for the County and for the School and Community College Districts and receive and pay out all public funds. I collect property taxes on b…

Shirley N. Weber (Democratic) — Secretary of State

…[17] “As I examine this district, I realize that it was practically drawn for me. It includes San Diego State University, a place where I spent my career as a professor and administrator. It overlaps with much of the sch…

Steve Hilton (Republican) — Governor

…good job, where you make enough to raise your family in a home of your own in a safe neighborhood with a good school so your kids have a better life than you. Great jobs, great homes, great kids. Reduce taxes for workers…

Tom Steyer (Democratic) — Governor

…going to close these corporate loopholes, and raise $20 billion of new revenue each year to fund things like education, healthcare, childcare, and home care, all without charging working people a penny. How do we do thi…

Methodology

Candidates’ published 2026 campaign-themes text on Ballotpedia is searched for the phrases below. When a match is found, a ~220-character snippet is extracted and scanned for support- or opposition-signal phrases. Classification is intentionally conservative — the snippet is the source of truth.

Match phrases: education, school, teacher, student debt, tuition, school choice, curriculum, TK-12, k-12, kindergarten, college, university, community college

Support signals: fund education, support teacher, free college, cancel student debt, expand pre-k

Opposition signals: school choice, voucher