At a hosted by the right-leaning Heritage Foundation, DeSantis pointed to recent dismal national test scores as vindication for his decision to fully reopen schools in the fall of 2020. He touted his parental rights agenda and defended his opposition to mask mandates and quarantines for children who weren鈥檛 sick.

鈥淭he way different places handled COVID is going to reverberate in terms of the educational outcomes for these kids for quite some time,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e got the big issues right. Unfortunately, a lot of places around the country got the big issues wrong.鈥�

The event coincided with the release of a new , which ranks Florida as first in the nation for school choice, transparency on education and the extent to which it keeps 鈥渙verburdensome鈥� regulations to a minimum. But as with recent appearances in and , the events also offered an opportunity to position DeSantis, who is running for reelection against Democrat Charlie Crist, as a potential national candidate. 

鈥淵ou can stand for regular people, and we can beat these elites,鈥� he said, acknowledging the 鈥渂lowback鈥� he faced from teachers unions for requiring schools to be open five days a week. 鈥淚鈥檒l take the arrows. That鈥檚 what a leader does.鈥�

In the , DeSantis has at least a 5 percentage point lead over Crist. Critics say his policies defy Republicans鈥� preference for local control, and he鈥檚 facing a federal lawsuit over a new law that limits what teachers and college professors can say about race and gender in the classroom. 

DeSantis-backed school board candidates picked up seats across Florida in last month鈥檚 primary. But Corey DeAngelis, a speaker at the event and a senior fellow at the conservative American Federation for Children, said the anti-union message resonates beyond Florida.

He pointed to the defeat of nine out of 10 in the Republican primary who were backed by the Tennessee Education Association. 

鈥淐oming out against parental rights in education is becoming a form of political suicide,鈥� he said, citing Democrat Terry McAuliffe鈥檚 statement in last year鈥檚 Virginia governor鈥檚 race that he didn鈥檛 think 鈥減arents should be telling schools what to teach.鈥� Many observers link that comment to his defeat by Republican Glenn Youngkin.

鈥楶olitical games鈥�

McAuliffe during that campaign for having American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten join him at a rally. But that hasn鈥檛 stopped some Democratic candidates from giving the teachers unions even more visibility this year. 

In Florida, Crist chose United Teachers of Dade President as his running mate. And in Pennsylvania, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, in a tight race against Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz for a Senate seat, said if he wins, would be to the teachers unions.

Democrats are divided over whether President Joe Biden鈥檚 could lift their chances at the polls in November. But some, like Nevada incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, running against Republican Adam Laxalt, on passage of the American Rescue Plan, which included $122 billion for K-12. 

Heather Harding, executive director of the Campaign for Our Shared Future, is among those trying to redirect the conversation on education away from culture wars. Funded by organizations that , the nonprofit is organizing parents and educators to counter conservative activist groups like Moms for Liberty.

“Many politicians across the country are manufacturing controversies and outrage for their own personal gain,鈥� Harding said in an email, without naming DeSantis specifically. 鈥淭heir political games are hurting our children’s education and futures.鈥�

The left-leaning Network for Public Education issued its own earlier this year, ranking states on their 鈥渞esistance to the privatization of public education.鈥� Nebraska and North Dakota, which have neither voucher programs nor charter school laws, both received an A+.

By contrast, the Heritage Foundation鈥檚 new tool measures education policies that matter most to conservatives. States received more points if they support alternative teacher licensing programs and dropped Common Core standards. They ranked lower, however, if they have a lot of districts with diversity officers, which according to their , 鈥減rovide political support and organization to one side of the debate over the contentious issues of race and opportunity.鈥�

The report card builds on earlier efforts 鈥� from groups like and the conservative 鈥� to identify states with more choice-friendly features at a time when the movement to give families more options has picked up momentum.

Arizona, which came in second in the report card, recently opened up its to any family. Proponents of expanded choice want to see public education funds 鈥渇ollow the child鈥� into whatever school, public or private, the parent chooses.

鈥淚f you like your public school, you can keep your public school,鈥� DeAngelis said, offering a twist on the motto former President Barack Obama used to promote the Affordable Care Act. 鈥淚 think we’re going to look back in a couple of decades 鈥� and think it was just absolutely ridiculous that we forced families to take their kids鈥� education dollars to residentially assigned government-run institutions.鈥�