VIRGINIA — Former Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin founded a national policy group named Empowering America’s Parents on August 5, 2026. The organization will launch a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign targeting Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin to drive adoption of the Education Freedom Tax Credit in states that have not yet opted into the program.

The campaign focuses on states where internal polling for Empowering America’s Parents indicates low public awareness of the tax credit, particularly in suburban areas where persuadable voters reside. The group plans to use these advertisements to promote transparency in public education and encourage participation in the federal scholarship initiative before it takes effect.

The Education Freedom Tax Credit was included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law in July 2025. This legislation allows taxpayers to claim a federal income tax credit of up to $1,700 for contributions to Scholarship Granting Organizations, which provide scholarships for K–12 education expenses including tuition, tutoring, and services for children with disabilities.

Virginia was the first state to opt into the Education Freedom Tax Credit under the act, a decision Youngkin announced in January 2026 while serving as governor. He left the office of Governor of Virginia in January 2026, as state law prohibits governors from serving consecutive terms. As of July 2026, 31 states have indicated they will participate in the program, while 19 states and the District of Columbia have not yet announced their decisions.

In addition to Virginia, 27 other states have either opted in or are on track to opt into the credit, with 24 of them led by Republican governors. Eleven states have passed laws related to the tax credit as of July 2026, including eight that require the state to opt in and nine that established a certification authority for Scholarship Granting Organizations. The U.S. Treasury has outlined that it is unlikely to allow states to impose more restrictive requirements on these organizations than those specified in the federal law.

Youngkin criticized the governors who have not joined the program, stating in a statement that "Regrettably, 20 states have refused to opt-in to these scholarships." He added that "Empowering America’s Parents will recognize the strong leaders who embraced this program and aggressively call out far-left governors who won’t stand with parents and are instead playing politics." The former governor argued that the credit empowers parents without using state dollars.

A launch video for the group featured narration but did not include an appearance by Youngkin. The narrator asked, "Nothing is more important than our kids, so who’d be against scholarships for tuition, tutoring, services for kids with disabilities, all paid for by a federal tax credit with no state dollars?" The voiceover continued, "Not hardworking parents — but far-left governors won’t play ball." Internal polling cited by the group indicates that people express support for the tax credit once they learn about it.

Education policy was a core issue in Youngkin’s 2021 gubernatorial campaign, during which he defeated Democratic opponent Terry McAuliffe. Youngkin attacked McAuliffe for vetoing bills that would have allowed parents to opt their children out of lessons involving books deemed to have sexually explicit content. Prior to his political career, Youngkin spent 25 years at The Carlyle Group, a private equity firm, where he became co-CEO in 2018.

In an April interview, Youngkin told a news outlet host that he has "more to give" regarding his political future. The Education Freedom Tax Credit program is scheduled to officially launch in January 2027, allowing taxpayers to begin claiming the dollar-for-dollar nonrefundable federal tax credit through approved Scholarship Granting Organizations.

Why It Matters

The campaign targets four non-participating states where polling shows low public awareness but high potential support, aiming to shift the political calculus before the January 2027 launch. With 20 states currently refusing to opt in, the effort seeks to pressure governors by framing the decision as a choice between supporting parents or playing politics. Success in these key jurisdictions would expand access to the federal tax credit for K–12 expenses without requiring state funding.