This op-ed by SPN Senior Messaging Strategist Erin Norman first published at Governing.

As we ramp up into midterm elections season, the uproar surrounding critical race theory (CRT) will only get louder. Republicans who are convinced that the issue put Glenn Youngkin over the line in last year’s unexpected GOP gubernatorial win in Virginia will look to gain favor with parents’ increasing concerns about what is taught in public schools. Democrats, meanwhile, will use CRT to try to convince voters that their opponents are racist and favor extreme censorship.

Both parties are eager to jump into the fray because across the ideological spectrum voters have concerns about public schools — and those fears can and will drive voters to the polls. Apprehension regarding school curriculums existed before the COVID-19 pandemic, but as millions of students were sent home for virtual schooling, parents got a closer look at what their children were learning. Many did not approve of the lessons they saw regarding race and equality in America.

Specifically, a recent SPN State Voices poll shows that just one in 10 Americans believe schools have the right approach to teaching race and equity. Agreement is similar between Republicans and Democrats.

Partisans certainly do have their differences of opinions regarding content. There are 20- and 30-point differences between Democrats and Republicans on how certain race- and equity-related topics should enter the classroom, such as whether all white people bear responsibility for racism (38 percent of Democrats agree with that, versus 12 percent of Republicans) and whether or not America is fundamentally built on racism (46 percent of Democrats versus 10 percent of Republicans).

Read the full piece at Governing here.