The Chicago Teachers Union is toxic among Democrats

The results of the union’s transformation into a political machine speak for themselves.

Illinois primary season is in full swing, with Election Day just a month away.

The political shakeup is unprecedented in the Chicago area.

Five open congressional seats, plus an open seat for U.S. Senate, several open seats in the state House and Senate, and a competitive race for Cook County board president.

All will largely be decided by the March 17 Democratic primary.

And the latter saw one of the most interesting developments of any race last week, with news of an auspicious endorsement. Or lack thereof.

‘Didn’t seek’ endorsement from the Chicago Teachers Union

The Chicago Tribune’s Alice Yin reported that Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle did not seek an endorsement from the Chicago Teachers Union.

“I didn’t seek their endorsement,” Preckwinkle told reporters Thursday, before rattling off a list of unions like the Chicago Federation of Labor and other left-leaning groups who are backing her campaign. “And I’m proud of those endorsements,” she said. “I’ve also been endorsed by the governor of the state, JB Pritzker, the speaker of the House and the president of the Senate…”

[T]he former public school teacher’s choice to skip the CTU’s endorsement slate, which has long been viewed as an early signal to progressives about which candidates they should coalesce around, was striking.

Under heavy fire from political opponents, the union and its close ally Johnson have been struggling to hold together their coalition that got him elected in 2023 after backing Preckwinkle for her 2019 mayoral bid. That’s led a few on the left to jump ship early, as evidenced in the mayor’s grueling budget fight last fall.

But it’s unclear whether the famously tight-lipped Preckwinkle is actually on the outs with CTU or merely distancing herself out of concern that the firebrand group’s brand — or Johnson’s — has grown toxic. Preckwinkle is in the midst of one of her most heated primaries yet, and moderate challenger Ald. Brendan Reilly has been attacking her early support of Johnson as being instrumental to his rise.

Preckwinkle, head of the Cook County Democratic Party, is the most prominent Illinois Democrat to snub the union in this manner.

And it’s happening even as CTU-backed Mayor Brandon Johnson is touting his support for Preckwinkle’s campaign. (A fact quickly highlighted by her opponent, Chicago Ald. Brendan Reilly.)

So what’s really happening here?

Gates’ laundry list of controversies

The union’s influence has waned in part due to an endless string of controversies from CTU President Stacy Davis Gates.

Here’s the comprehensive list, with receipts, in no particular order.

• Threatened a principal and former CTU delegate with physical violence

• Insulted critics as “slow”

• Mocked Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez by comparing him to a “terrible” special education student who can’t be suspended

• Called a prominent local journalist a “stalker” for reporting on her actions as union president

• Told a senior SEIU executive: “Y’all ain’t shit and you ain’t shit”

• Hid five years of union audits from CTU members and then bullied teachers who were forced to file a lawsuit to see those audits, calling them “extreme right wing” and claiming they were associated with Project 2025

• Called the Chicago Tribune “bullshit” and the Illinois Policy Institute “freak shows”

• Killed a school choice scholarship program that served thousands of low-income Chicago children, including several who attended the same private school as her own child.

• Took an illegal property tax break on a home in Indiana

• Failed to pay $5,700 in city trash, sewer, and water bills despite making more than $289,000 a year

• Improperly funneled CTU member dues into Brandon Johnson’s campaign for mayor, forcing teachers to file an unfair labor practice complaint

• Pulled CPS students out of class for the explicit purpose of voting “yes” on the “Bring Chicago Home” referendum, in clear violation of CPS ethics rules

• Pushed for a $300 million high-interest payday loan to fund a new CTU contract

• Spurred local and national backlash after claiming standardized testing is “junk science rooted in white supremacy”

• Fought for lower property taxes on CTU headquarters while advocating for higher taxes on others

Her actions and ideological extremism have come with compounding costs for the union’s political muscle.

No longer winning

Has CTU’s pull really weakened since Johnson went from the union’s payroll to occupying the fifth floor of City Hall?

Consider the following:

1. Voters rejected the CTU-backed Bring Chicago Home referendum in a low-turnout election that should have favored the union and Mayor Brandon Johnson.

2. Gates claimed supporters of a bill in Springfield to protect against closure of selective enrollment CPS schools were “racist.” The bill then passed the Illinois House 92-8.

   1. The bill, filed by state Rep. Margaret Croke, D-Chicago, was inspired by fears that a CTU-dominated school board would close or significantly alter selective enrollment schools. It would have barred CPS from any school closures until a fully elected board was seated in 2027. “That kind of criticism is uncalled for,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in response to the union’s attack. “Especially about the bill that was being discussed and about the person that was leading that bill.”

3. Six of 9 CTU-backed candidates lost their elections for Chicago Board of Education. The union spent $2.1 million on losing candidates, according to a Chicago Policy Center analysis.

4. Polling in 2025 showed the union’s favorability underwater for the first time in modern Chicago history. Just 29% of Chicagoans had a favorable opinion of the CTU while 60% had an unfavorable opinion (-31 net). Asked about Gates, 18% had a favorable opinion while 55% had an unfavorable opinion (-37 net).

It’s tough to come to any other conclusion: voter attitudes toward the CTU have shifted dramatically.

What to watch for

In 2026 and beyond, the following will tell the tale on whether CTU remains toxic with Illinois Democrats:

• The results of competitive March primary elections in which CTU has endorsed a candidate. Keep a special eye on state Rep. Jaime Andrade’s race in Chicago. He is the union’s top target to take out in the Illinois House. CTU is backing democratic socialist challenger Miguel Alvelo-Rivera.

• What, if anything, the Gates-led Illinois Federation of Teachers is able to pass in Springfield during the spring session. The IFT is running a lobby day this week to pressure state lawmakers to pass a suite of new tax hikes.

• The results of the November 2026 Chicago school board elections, in particular the citywide election for school board president.

• Whether Illinois state lawmakers pursue reforms to reduce the CTU’s extraordinary power over Chicagoans.

Depending on the results of these upcoming fights, Preckwinkle may be far from the last prominent Democrat to avoid a CTU endorsement.

In the news

Reminder: I’ll be joining Paris Schutz and the Chicago Area Public Affairs Group at the Union League Club on Feb. 19 for a discussion on the Illinois primaries. The event is sold out, but you can join the waiting list here.

I joined The Mincing Rascals on WGN to discuss the SAVE Act, ICE, and more. (YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts)

My “green light” recommendation: Trances (1981).