A new poll conducted by YouGov on behalf of the yes. every kid. foundation suggests that the majority of Americans are supportive of several types of school choice, including public school open enrollment and education savings accounts (ESAs).
The yes. every kid. foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for the expansion of educational flexibility in order to “unlock the potential of every kid.”
80 percent of K-12 parents surveyed by the organization expressed a belief that “all children benefit from families having more control and choices in K-12 education.”
Overall, 69 percent of respondents expressed this same opinion, including 77 percent of Republicans, 68 percent of Independents and 65 percent of Democrats.
Across all other reported demographics, at least two-thirds of those taking the survey agreed with this line of thinking.
Similarly, a strong majority of respondents from across the board indicated support for giving families “some” or a “great deal” of room to customize a K-12 education that “meets the unique needs of each individual child.”
This opinion, supported by 72 percent of respondents, was also shared by 77 percent of K-12 parents, 82 percent of Republicans, 72 percent of Democrats, and 61 percent of Independents.
The overall share of respondents agreeing with this sentiment has been growing slightly, rising a bit from 69 percent in 2023.
Despite this, the portion of respondents expressing support for making K-12 education more flexible for families has fell slightly over the past several years from 74 percent in 2023 to 69 percent this year.
The question presented to respondents described this potential increased flexibility as including policies such as “things like giving families more choices in how their child receives an education, the schools they can attend, and financial resources to help pay for school and other expenses.”
Along these same lines, the proportion of those surveyed who think that increased flexibility would strengthen the education has also decreased, but much like for the previous question, a solid majority of 58 percent still feel that it is a good idea.
It is also worth noting that at least 50 percent of each reported demographic subgroup indicated a belief that increasing flexibility would strengthen the education system, with the share of supportive respondents rising to as much as 68 percent.
Over two-thirds of respondents shared a favorable opinion of public school open enrollment, a school choice policy that allows for a student to enroll in any public school located within their state regardless of the district in which they live.
This increases to 74 percent among K-12 parents.
When broken down by political affiliation, Republicans were the most supportive of open enrollment at 70 percent, followed by 63 percent of Democrats and 59 percent of Independents.
A slightly smaller share of respondents said that they believe implementing open enrollment policies would improve the nation’s overall education system, coming in at 50 percent.
This is roughly the same as the share of K-12 parents who expressed this opinion, which came in at 52 percent.
Those who were categorized as upper middle class or higher were the most likely to believe open enrollment would be a net positive for the education system, while Independents were the least likely to hold such a belief.
When broken down by demographics, agreement with this assertion ranged from 44 percent to 56 percent.
Another key policy addressed in this survey are ESAs, which are generally understood as a means by which the families of children who do not attend public schools may access a portion of the tax dollars that otherwise would have gone to their local school districts for alternative education-related expenses.
63 percent of respondents expressed support for ESAs in this survey, a share that has remained consistent over the past few years.
ESAs also earned support from the majority of respondents in all reported demographic subgroups, including 55 percent of Democrats, 56 percent of Independents, and 77 percent of Republicans.
K-12 parents also expressed an outsized level of support for ESAs, with 74 percent favoring the system.
Of those who support the implementation of ESAs, 70 percent feel that they should be available to all students, not just those who come from a low-income household.
A slightly smaller share, 62 percent, of K-12 parents who support ESAs feel the same way.
76 percent of Independents, 73 percent of Republicans, and 64 percent of Democrats also agree with this sentiment.
Those who were upper middle class or higher were also more likely to support universal ESA eligibility than those who were identified as poor. or working class.
Much like with open enrollment, only about half of respondents indicated a belief that implementing ESAs would improve the overall education system.
This survey also sought to gauge respondents’ opinions on education tax credits, which were explained as an income tax credit that would be given to families to spend on education-related expenses for their children.
58 percent of respondents, including 66 percent of K-12 parents, expressed support for such a program.
Overall, however, the share of people in favor of implementing these tax credits has decreased over the past several years, dropping from 66 percent two years ago.
67 percent of Republicans, 56 percent of Democrats, and 50 percent of Independents also said this year that they think these credits would be a good idea.
Once again, despite the higher margins of support for the policy itself, only 53 percent of respondents said that they believe making these tax credits a reality would improve the nation’s overall education system.
Those taking this poll were also asked if they believe K-12 schools need to be “more accountable to parents.” More than three-quarters of respondents said yes, while just 13 percent said no.
Over two-thirds of each reported subgroup also agreed with this sentiment, including 89 percent of Republicans, 72 percent of Independents, and 67 percent of Democrats. The share of K-12 parents favoring this position is roughly aligned with the overall figure.
Around 60 percent of respondents said that they believe increased portability — wherein the funding follows the child if they leave their otherwise designated public school — would improve schools’ accountability.
Following along with this, approximately the share of survey takers said that they feel school funding should be dependent upon the number of students they teach, meaning that funding would fluctuate alongside enrollment.
Conducted by YouGov, this survey has a 3.6 percent margin of error. The 1,351 individuals who were interviewed were matched down to a sample of 1,000.
Click Here to Read the Full Results of the Poll
Note: This article was updated on January 2, 2026 to accurately indicate that the yes. every kid. foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization.
