On November 4th, we celebrated a major victory for democracy and working people: California’s passage of Proposition 50, the Election Rigging Response Act. As educators and union members, we know what it means to stand firm against threats — and we know how to win when we fight together.

This was not a small feat. CFT, alongside other unions, made tens of thousands of calls in support of Prop 50. CFT members alone made over 25,000 calls. We showed up — to phone banks, to door knock — because we understood what was at stake: not just redistricting, but our ability to defend our schools, our students, and our democracy.

We’ve been attacked by the Trump administration from all angles, most prevalently, immigrant families, LGBTQ+ individuals, the undermining of public education, and the attempt to erode the rights of workers. In spite of that, we have refused to be bystanders. Our members have joined in droves to march in anti-ICE protests, No King’s rallies, and lifted our voices in every corner of California.

The passage of Prop 50 is a testament to the grit and resilience of our educators and classified professionals. It’s also a clear signal — fighting back works. Authoritarianism doesn’t win unchallenged. When we organize, our values prevail. But make no mistake: this is just the beginning. Prop 50 gives us a powerful tool, but we can’t stop here. 

It underscores the urgency of the labor movement’s role in reshaping our country. Labor is laying a foundation for sustained political engagement. To every educator who worried whether our mobilization would be enough — let this be proof: it was enough, and more. Our collective voice reverberated across the state.

To those who might feel cautiously optimistic: this win does not mean we can rest. We’ve been here before: progress followed by pushback. But today, we are stronger. We are more unified. And we have the strategy to keep going.

What’s next?

Our next political priority in California will be to renew Prop 55. This measure is an extension of our Millionaire’s Tax (Prop 30 from 2012 and Prop 55 from 2016), and it will make this tax permanent. This measure generates between $5 billion and $15 billion a year for public education, and we must qualify it for the November 2026 ballot and then make sure it passes.

Our entire campaign has to collect over 1 million signatures to qualify this measure – The California Children’s Education & Health Care Protection Act of 2026 – for next November’s ballot. We are in the early stages of CFT’s signature gathering efforts and have reached out to individual CFT activists to gather signatures over the holidays. We will also be sending petitions to CFT locals in the coming weeks.

Join us. Organize with us. Fight back with us. And fight for for all of us.