The 2020 election is on pace to have the highest voter turnout, as a share of the voting-eligible population, since the 1908 election. After four days of counting ballots, former vice president Joe Biden cleared the 270 electoral college threshold to become the 46th President of the United States. Although these results are not official until the Electoral College meets on December 14th to vote, the final result is unlikely to change.
In general, it is expected that the Biden Administration will seek to prioritize and invest heavily into our nation’s education and workforce systems, especially in the face of the current global pandemic and recession. Further, President-elect Biden’s campaign has released numerous proposals that will serve as the foundation to his Administration’s policy agenda moving forward. In terms of CTE, many of these policy proposals include specific provisions within them that would be beneficial. For example, his plan dedicated to the nation’s caregiving and education workforces calls for $1 billion over the next four years to recruit and re-train current and future professionals seeking careers in these fields. Other examples include his Made in America, Clean Energy, Climate, and Infrastructure plans, all of which contain provisions to either directly, or indirectly, benefit the growth and support of CTE.
One of the most important proposals for CTE advocates is the Biden Plan for Education Beyond High School. This proposal calls for providing two years of free community college and the creation of a new program designed to help community colleges improve student success, tackle the barriers that prevent students from completing their degree or training credential, and make a $50 billion investment into high-quality training programs.
Other specific policy recommendations that matter to ACTE’s members include increasing funding for teacher mentoring, leadership and professional development; helping teachers reduce their own student loan obligations by strengthening the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program; investing in technology and labs to prepare students for future jobs; and doubling the number of psychologists, counselors, nurses and social workers in schools.
While some races for the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate are still too close to call, it is clear that Democrats have retained their majority in the House. As of 9:00AM Tuesday, the balance of power sits at 216-198, with 21 elections still waiting to be called. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) once again will be seeking, and is the heavy favorite, to assume the gavel as Speaker of the House, although there are rumblings of disappointment within the Democratic caucus about their underperformance in House races. In terms of education and CTE policy, with the majority remaining the same, we do not believe much will change in terms of priorities. Democrats will most likely seek to reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA), strengthen registered apprenticeships and reauthorize the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
On the Senate side, control of the majority is still unclear, although the odds are in favor of Republicans remaining in control of the upper chamber. Currently, Democrats have netted one seat and the chamber remains at a 48-48 tie. Alaska, North Carolina and two races in Georgia have yet to be decided, but Republicans are expected to win North Carolina and Alaska, which would give them 50 seats, putting them one away from a majority. Both races in Georgia look to be headed toward a January 5th special election, since no candidates have met the 50% vote threshold required in that state. This would leave the fate of the majority unclear until the new year. If the Republicans do retain the majority, it is all but certain that Sen. Mitch McConnell will continue as majority leader. In terms of CTE specific implications, the Georgia races will have the most immediate and large implications on the direction of policy. If the Senate remains in Republican control, we expect it to be much more difficult for the Administration to move priorities forward, and without bipartisan compromise, gridlock could be the primary outcome. Some bipartisan items that may move would include reauthorizations of HEA and WIOA, and updates to the National Apprenticeship Act.
Specific to the CTE Caucus, both House CTE Caucus co-chairs, Representatives Glenn Thompson (R-PA) and Jim Langevin (D-RI) were re-elected, while none of the four Senate Caucus co-chairs were up for re-election. More specific information about the election implications on the CTE Caucus is forthcoming, so please stay tuned!
ACTE will continue to closely monitor the outstanding results in House and Senate races and will provide additional updates on new Members of Congress, committee assignments, congressional priorities and more in the weeks and months to come.
In addition to the federal elections, the results are still coming in for other candidates and issues on the ballot. For additional insight into education-related election updates, particularly in the states, visit Education Week's dedicated election results blog.