Richard Chew is joined by Illinois State Sen. Willie Preston, candidate for Congress in the 2nd District of Illinois. He was elected to the Illinois Senate in November 2022, re-elected in November 2024, and serves as chair of the Black Caucus in the Illinois General Assembly. The 16th Senate District he represents spans several southwest suburbs and parts of Chicago.
Preston emphasized his authenticity, audacity, and action as key campaign themes. "I think those three things are really, quite frankly, a very good description of who I am, but it's who I think most people want to see represent them."
He continued: "The simple fact that we are talking today in an interview about me running for Congress is pretty remarkable. . . . I came from Englewood, and I was involved in the things that people in my age group were involved in the early 2000s, young men like me. I was not promised to be much in life. Most of my friends, quite frankly, are dead or in jail or struggling because they did prison time and haven't been able to really redeem or reclaim their life and become contributing members of society because of the pit holes that exist in this nation. That black mark is on your forehead if you've ever got convicted of anything."
Preston highlighted his work in passing the Illinois Food Safety Act, noting that food safety is an issue that "cuts across all demographics, cuts across all racial, ethnic lines. And people just want to make sure that their food supply is actually safe and that it's not poison, essentially, that they're eating. And so that's something that I'm going to focus on heavily. Working-class Democrats really need to reclaim our place in the party, and I think working-class Democrats will make sure that they reward the party by making sure the nation is back in Democratic control, and the only way we do that is if we elect people that are truly, truly from the community that they are seeking to represent."
Catch "Chew's Views with Richard Chew” weekdays from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/chews-views).
And find the "Chew's Views" Full Episodes podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, YouTube, Amazon and TuneIn.
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