Chicago Teachers Union members vote down effort to raise union dues to pay for political campaigns

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Chicago Teachers Union members have voted down an effort to raise dues.

The union's goal was to raise teacher dues to help pay for political campaigns.

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Among the campaigns is likely one for the CTU-backed candidate for Chicago Board of Education president, CTU political director Hilario Dominguez.

Critics argue Chicago Public Schools needs an independent board president.

In a letter to members Saturday, the union said it expects to come back to this issue in the fall.

"For the past month, our members have engaged in robust debate about a constitutional amendment to make our dues more equitable and fortify our union for the rising costs, fights, and accelerating attacks against public education and workers ahead of us," the CTU letter read in part. "While not all votes have yet been tabulated, the results seem clear - a majority of CTU members have elected not to implement the proposed dues restructuring at this time. With approximately 80% of schools counted, if current voting trends hold, roughly 60% of members voted against moving forward with this proposal right now."