17-05-2025
Chicago Teacher Union election: Stacy Davis-Gates wins reelection as president
The Brief
Members of the Chicago Teachers Union reelected President Stacy Davis-Gates and the CORE leadership.
The incumbents earned 64% of the vote.
Davis-Gates fended off a challenge from Erika Meza, who challenged her handling of the CTU's finances.
CHICAGO - The Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis-Gates was reelected to another term this week, fending off a challenge from Erika Meza.
Davis-Gates, who was first elected CTU president in 2022, will remain the leader of the union of nearly 30,000 members.
What we know
Davis-Gates and the incumbent ruling faction known as "CORE" earned 64% of the vote, the union said in an update on its website.
The winning side touted its accomplishments, including the ratification of a new contract with the Chicago Public Schools district, pushing for an elected school board, and even helping to elect Mayor Brandon Johnson, a CTU member.
Davis-Gates led the often combative year-long contract negotiations with CPS. The new contract netted teachers a 4–5% raise per year. About 97% of the voting members approved the new deal.
What they're saying
In a statement, the CTU said:
"In a moment where the billionaire bros are stripping federal workers of their collective bargaining rights, where states like Indiana are targeting the institution of public schools altogether, and where Black Americans and individuals of every identity are seeing their voting rights rolled back, we are proud of the vibrancy of our union democracy, grateful to every member who participated, and delivered this mandate to keep building and keep moving forward."
The other side
But CTU's public image hasn't fared as well, with once-positive approval ratings taking a significant hit as the public has turned against not only CTU but the political movement it leads.
Meza echoed concerns that Davis-Gates and the CORE leadership failed to produce financial audits. Just this week, a judge rejected the CTU's motion to dismiss a lawsuit from some members who demanded answers.
Austin Berg of the libertarian think tank Illinois Policy Institute says it's been a losing proposition. According to an IPI analysis, the union spent nearly $3 million on recent elected school board elections – and lost three quarters of those races.
"Now today you see their favorability ratings in the 30s, with their leader Brandon Johnson, a former CTU organizer, also extraordinarily unpopular," Berg said.
