Poll: Chicago Teachers Union hits record-low popularity among Chicagoans

Just 27.5% of Chicago voters have a favorable opinion of CTU. Half are less likely to vote for a candidate who takes money from the union.

The Chicago Teachers Union is less popular than ever, a new poll shows.

Just 27.5% of Chicago voters have a favorable opinion of CTU. More than half — 53.6% — dislike the union. So for every Chicago voter who has a favorable opinion of CTU, two don’t like the union.

The voters were polled Feb. 25-26 by M3 Strategies for the Illinois Policy Institute.

What’s more, half of Chicago voters are less likely to vote for a candidate who takes CTU money.

That toxicity could play a role in whether candidates seek CTU’s endorsement.

Take Toni Preckwinkle, who’s vying for her fifth term as Cook County Board president. She told journalists she did not seek CTU’s endorsement this go-around, without saying why. She does have the endorsement of other unions.

Preckwinkle’s decision not to seek CTU’s endorsement was “striking,” the Chicago Tribune wrote.

“But it’s unclear whether the famously tight-lipped Preckwinkle is actually on the outs with CTU or merely distancing herself out of concern that the firebrand group’s brand — or [Mayor Brandon] Johnson’s — has grown toxic,” wrote reporter Alice Yin.

Given the union’s dismal public approval rating — and voters’ preferences against candidates who take CTU money — it’s probably best for office-seekers to steer clear.