It looks like Coloradans have rejected an attempt to enshrine school choice in the state constitution.

As of 9:45 p.m., Amendment 80 lost, with 52 percent opposed and 48 percent in favor. This measure, which would have been the first of its kind in the nation, requires 55 percent of the vote to be added to the state constitution.

It would have added language stating that “every K-12 child has the right to school choice” and that “parents have the right to direct their children’s education.” Charters, private schools, residential schools and “future innovations in education” were specifically mentioned as options guaranteed by the state constitution.

Opponents celebrated the apparent defeat of the constitutional amendment.

“We think it's really encouraging that people understand what this ballot measure was really intended to do, which is to create a pathway for a voucher system for private schools,” said Kevin Vick, president of the Colorado Education Association. “And we’re also very encouraged that Colorado voters really value public schools and don’t want this to happen.”

A legislative analysis concluded that the measure would have no immediate impact on education in Colorado, but could have opened the door for future changes to education laws and funding.

Vick said the measure's vagueness would have created a “legal quagmire” that, in a worst-case scenario, would have resulted in millions of dollars being drained from the public education system.

The dispute over the measure drew millions from both sides and brought complaints against supporters who were accused of fraudulent campaign practices. Amendment 80 was a nuanced voting question and difficult for many to understand.

When Denver voter Kyle Slusher first read Amendment 80, he thought giving children options would be a good thing.

“But if it’s actually just about giving private schools the opportunity to use public school funds, then of course that doesn’t have to happen,” he said.

After doing further research, he changed his mind and voted “no.”

Advance Colorado, a conservative advocacy committee that does not disclose its donors, proposed the change. They argued that Amendment 80 would protect the right of families to choose the school – public, private or residential – that they believe is best for their child. It was also supported by Ready Colorado, the Colorado Catholic Conference and the Colorado Association of Private Schools.

The measure was opposed by a coalition that included the Colorado Education Association, the Colorado PTA, the Christian Home Educators of Colorado, the Colorado Democrats, Stand for Children, the ACLU Colorado and others.

School choice is popular in Colorado, with nearly 40 percent of public school students choosing a school outside of their assigned neighborhood school. The 30-year-old school choice law has bipartisan support. Critics of the measure argued that the constitutional amendment was unnecessary because there are already laws in place that give Coloradans the right to attend the school of their choice for free.

But advocates were concerned about what they said were increasing attempts to undermine the choices of local school boards, the state legislature and the state education agency. Supporters said Amendment 80 is a backstop for any legislative attempt to undo decades of bipartisan work to expand student choice.

“Attacks on school choice have become increasingly common in recent years, and we fear that certain pillars of support are falling away, such as Gov. Jared Polis,” said Brenda Dickhoner, president and CEO of Ready Colorado, a conservative education advocacy group. “The intent of Amendment 80 was really just to enshrine these rights in our Constitution so that they cannot be revoked.”

Advocates pointed to a proposed charter school bill last session that would have tightened accountability for charter schools by, for example, requiring them to report income and expenses related to marketing and recruiting students. Charter school advocates saw it as an attempt to give local school boards more authority to close charter schools. The bill was defeated at its first committee hearing.

Opening the door to public funding for private schools

Opponents of the measure argued that the right to choose a school, the right to choose a private school and the right to homeschool one's children are long-standing Colorado laws.

They argued that the constitutional guarantee of a right to private schools could initiate the introduction of school vouchers – a public subsidy for private school education. They said research shows that vouchers disproportionately harm Black and Latino students from low-income households and students with special needs while diverting resources from public schools.

Voucher-funded private schools often operate without accountability for student outcomes and there is evidence that they fail to increase academic achievement while exacerbating inequities, opponents argued. In some federal states, they primarily benefit students who are already enrolled in private schools. Schools that accept vouchers are also overwhelmingly religious and serve disproportionate numbers of white students.

Opponents also feared that Amendment 80, by giving parents the right to choose schools, could allow parents to micro-manage what schools teach, ban books or sue schools for following anti-discrimination laws.

Supporters of Amendment 80 called the accusation that it would send money to private schools scaremongering. They said they considered doing a voucher ballot initiative but decided against it. They explained that the measure was simply enshrining the right to school choice in the constitution.

Big money race and misleading texts

Money poured into the race from issue committees, both for and against Amendment 80. Public Schools Strong raised nearly $5 million to oppose the measure, including donations from teachers unions, and had a 4.6 rating as of Nov. 1 Millions of US dollars spent. The measure was supported by Colorado Dawn, which spent nearly $1.4 million between Oct. 12 and Nov. 1, according to the secretary of state's 48-hour disclosure form. Another $200,000 was donated in support of the measure by Defend Colorado, an anti-business and anti-tax group, and Advance Colorado Action donated $15,000. These groups do not disclose their donors.

The Colorado Dawn Independent Expenditure Committee had to address a campaign finance complaint for failing to provide a disclaimer on a text sent to voters. It falsely claimed that the state's largest teachers union supported a school choice ballot measure. The text included an audio clip of Colorado Education Association President Kevin Vick explaining that school choice has been the law in Colorado for 30 years and has broad bipartisan support. That is true, but these were the reasons why the CEA opposed Amendment 80. The text incorrectly used Vick's words to persuade voters to vote for Amendment 80.

The same thing happened with texts that used words from U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper, who opposed the measure, and Gov. Jared Polis, who was neutral on the measure.