Conservatives decry Chicago Votes parade to polls with CPS students involving rally at CTU HQ

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Conservatives in Illinois are decrying a Friday parade to the polls event that involves the Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools students.

Voter turnout for primary elections is usually pretty dismal which is why Chicago Votes, a non-partisan group, is hoping to engage first time youth voters with its Parade to the Polls. The event is with Chicago Public Schools students, and will begin Friday with a rally at Chicago Teachers Union headquarters.

But the conservative think tank Illinois Policy Institute has filed complaints with CPS' ethics and inspector general offices after obtaining an email sent in February to high school teachers. The email is from CTU vice president Jackson Potter, and says besides Chicago Votes and La Casa Norte, the rally will include Bring Chicago Home, the organization behind the referendum raising the real estate transfer tax for properties over $1 million to fund initiatives to combat homelessness in the city.

"It reeks of a political machine not a sincere effort to at teaching young people in sincere civic engagement," said Austin Berg of Illinois Policy Institute. "In both those complaints, we detail how the Chicago Teachers Union is taking students out of class for a very partisan political event."

RELATED: Votes will now be counted for 'Bring Chicago Home' referendum, court rules

Despite what the email said, Chicago Votes and CTU said Bring Chicago Home is not part of Friday's rally. In a statement responding to the complaints, CTU wrote in part "This non-partisan event is being targeted by Donald Trump supporting, Bruce Rauner funded spreaders of misinformation."

CTU has donated more than $400,000 to Bring Chicago Home. Even if the organization is not part of the rally, political experts questioned why the event is taking place at CTU headquarters.

"The Chicago Teachers Union is a partisan organization; it supports political candidates and political causes, by its own, it is seen as a partisan event," said ABC7 Political Analyst Laura Washington.

But CTU said since its members include civic and government teachers, it has an obligation to provide students with an understanding of the democratic process.