Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino is hoping to use Common Core frustration to his advantage.
In a push to unseat Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Astorino is petitioning to create a “Stop Common Core” party to appear on New York’s upcoming election ballot. He anticipates the measure will garner support by uniting voters “across party lines,” his campaign manager Michael Lawler told National Review.
“Cuomo’s Common Core has been a disaster for parents, teachers and children alike,” Astorino wrote on his campaign site, saying he plans on ending Common Core by replacing it with “better standards, teaching and testing” controlled at the local level.
New York’s Common Core program shot to national attention after escalating teacher and parent criticism halted its implementation. Cuomo admitted the state’s rocky implementation was “rushed” and that adjustments need to be made before full roll out can be revisited, according to Capital New York.
Despite the delayed implementation and promised adjustments, 82 percent of New Yorkers oppose Common Core according to a June poll conducted by Times Union and Siena College Upstate Education. However, the New York Times points out that in spite of dissatisfaction with the law, few in the state want to completely strike Common Core from education reform.
Astorino needs 15,000 signatures from registered New York voters by August 19 in order to run on the “Stop Common Core” line. Republican Assemblyman Anthony Palumbo told the Suffolk Times he believes it has a “good chance” of making it to the ballot.
“I hope it makes it to the ballot because I think it’s going to have significant effect on the November election,” he said. “It’s a moral of the story that people are still very rigorous and, like we say, once you get the mommies angry, watch out.”
