The Conservative Classroom Coup: Connecting the Dots Between School Boards and State Court Takeovers
Written by Leah Nwizugbo, Summer Intern for State Courts
School board elections, once quiet PTA-powered affairs, are now the latest arena for high-stakes political battles as right-wing special interests have transformed these races into partisan battlegrounds. Now, school board elections are generating millions in campaign support, and those responsible for it have their eyes on a much bigger prize; they’re aiming to reshape the state judiciary.
Often these tight school board races are accompanied by heavily polarizing, partisan state court elections. The same entities that fund conservative school board candidates often also bankroll judicial campaigns, aiming to consolidate right-wing control across multiple levels of government. These financially padded local campaigns are not just about who sits on the school board; they’re about influencing the ideological foundation of state politics from its core.
Conservative donors, many of whom operate through super PACs (political action committees) and undisclosed dark money, value school boards as fertile ground for political empowerment at the local level. This approach has specifically emerged in battleground states like Wisconsin, Texas, and Pennsylvania, where donors are focused on backing candidates who align with their broader ideological goals. These financial backings are a mechanism within a broader coordinated effort to flip benches to the right within both the courts and school boards.
In Pennsylvania, all roads trace back to the empire created by Jeffrey Yass, prominent GOP donor. Yass, having built a Wall Street fortune to become the richest man in Pennsylvania, has donated massively to his respective political causes. A longtime supporter of school choice, he has donated $19 million to Students First PAC, a lobbying organization focused on funding charter schools. Students First also directly funds Commonwealth Leaders Fund PAC, another pot of conservative special interest money, to strategically expand their political influence in key elections. Most recently, the fund pooled money for Pennsylvania Supreme Court candidates, spending nearly $4 million to back Republican Carolyn Carluccio in the 2023 election.
Moreover, the Commonwealth Leaders Fund also supported various “school choice advocates” who echoed right-wing sentiments for alternatives to public school. Kevin Brobson received at least $1.8 million in campaign funding for his 2021 election victory to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court from the Commonwealth Leaders Fund. This coordinated financial effort to endorse candidates who champion conservative rhetoric is not just about winning individual races, but rather establishing a conservative web of influence.
In Texas, the conservative network and effort is equally evident. Texans for Educational Freedom (TEF) is dedicated to electing “freedom-minded” candidates to school boards in Texas, with the goal of fighting against what they falsely believe is critical race theory and promoting parental control in education. TEF heavily invested in the 2022 Texas State Board of Education race, contributing $195,088 to support LJ Francis, a conservative nominee who supported TEF’s positions. Tracking the moving dollars, it’s clear that the same entities propping up TEF’s mission also show a demonstrated interest in influencing Texas state judicial elections. Montgomery J. Bennet, Texas GOP donor and hospitality tycoon, donated $435,000 to TEF and subsequently $5,000 to John Devine’s 2024 reelection for Place 4 in the Texas Supreme Court. Devine believes the separation of church and state is a “myth” and boasts how often he was arrested at anti-abortion rallies. Within Texas, there’s a clear pattern of interconnected financial support in which the same donors lobby behind both school board and state supreme court candidates.
Although Wisconsin’s school board elections are technically nonpartisan, candidates often outwardly align themselves with broader political ideologies. The American Principles Project (APP), a conservative think tank that has branded itself as America’s “Top Defender of the Family,” has been an active player in Wisconsin’s judicial and school board elections. APP aims to influence elections by endorsing candidates who uphold their “pro-family vision,” specifically to censor LGBTQ+ and racially inclusive content. When Daniel Kelly, a conservative private practice lawyer, sought reelection to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 2023, APP subsequently made a $795,894 digital advertising investment in his campaign.
The key figure driving Wisconsin’s conservative political giving was Richard Uihlein, Chicago-based billionaire CEO of shipping powerhouse. In 2024, APP received a hefty $4 million donation from Restoration PAC, which Uihlein regularly forks millions towards. Restoration PAC proceeded to move $4 million to Fair Courts PAC, a conservative judicial bench packing organization, which Uihlein also heavily funds. Fair Courts PAC also flooded Dan Kelly’s race with $4 million in campaign spending, in efforts to flip the Wisconsin Supreme Court to the right.
In 2022, Restoration PAC, one of the main money sources for Fair Courts PAC, shoveled upwards of $1 million to 1776 Project PAC. A response to the 1619 Project, 1776 Project PAC’s focus is to elect conservative candidates to school boards across the country. 1776 Project PAC then provided formal endorsements for right-wing West De Pere school board candidates, including Justin Czador, Jason Dorn, and Melissa Niffenegger. This cat and mouse game between conservative political entities, wealthy donors, and right-wing candidates has blurred the line between campaign endorsement and ideological political maneuvering.
The growing politicization of school board elections, powered by wealthy donors, reveals the national right-wing effort to take control at multiple levels of state governance. With conservative campaigns across the board being injected with special interest money, their platforms often share unified stances with their donors on polarizing issues. If the intrinsic goal is to spread right-wing ideology, then special interest entities will back the judicial and school board candidates who echo their perspectives.
This explosion of election funding across these races is a deliberate attempt to reshape the educational landscape at its core to reflect a right-wing worldview. If both conservative school board candidates and state court justices are funded by the same individuals and PACs, then there’s a clear effort to win favorable decisions on public education, curriculum control, and so-called parental freedoms. This dual-front approach would help ensure that ideological changes pushed at the local school board level are reinforced by judicial decisions at the state level, creating a cohesive and far-reaching impact on public policy.
