55: Leslie Collazo: Republican Candidate for Illinois State Representative In The 8th District

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Meet Leslie Collazo, a passionate advocate and dedicated community leader from the heart of Chicago. Born and raised in Illinois, Leslie is a proud daughter of Puerto Rican heritage, bringing a rich cultural perspective and a commitment to serving her community. As she embarks on her journey to become the State Representative for the 8th District, Leslie's bilingual abilities amplify her connection with diverse constituents.

 Leslie holds a Bachelor's Degree in Speech Communications from Northeastern Illinois University, where she honed her skills in effective communication and advocacy. Her career has been a tapestry of experiences—ranging from grassroots organizing and community engagement to teaching in charter schools and managing accounts in the nonprofit sector. Currently, she thrives in residential and commercial real estate, where she helps families find their homes and businesses establish their roots.

A true champion for the next generation, Leslie is committed to addressing the pressing challenges facing the 8th District. She believes in delivering pragmatic solutions that uplift all residents, whether they are first responders, business owners, or everyday working Americans.

Leslie is not just a candidate; she’s a common-sense leader with a vision for a brighter future. She is dedicated to education reform and human rights, ensuring that every voice is heard and every dream has the chance to flourish.

At home in North Austin, Leslie and her husband are nurturing their two children, who proudly attend Chicago Public Schools. This personal connection fuels her passion for improving educational opportunities and community resources for all families.

Join Leslie Collazo in her mission to bring fresh, impactful leadership to the 8th District—because together, we can save Illinois NOW!

For more information on Leslie and her campaign, please visit: https://www.collazoforillinois.com/

Episode Transcript

Jason Wagner (00:00):
Welcome back to another episode of the Real Life
Investing Podcast with Jasonand Rachel Wagner.
We have an awesome one here foryou today.
We have a special guest.
Leslie Colazzo is running forstate representative in the 8th
District for Illinois and she'srunning as a Republican and we
are totally blessed and excitedto have her for a candid

(00:21):
conversation.
And I think a lot of theseconversations like kind of need
to be had.
We have like a huge decisionkind of coming up here with
election day around the cornerand we're just like really
excited to hear who Leslie is,what she represents and why
she's running.
So, Leslie, thank you forcoming.

Leslie Collazo (00:37):
Thank you for having me, Jason, Rachel.
It's really exciting to be hereand I feel like I can breathe
and actually take my timeexplaining where I come from,
why I'm doing what I'm doing,and we'll see what the future
holds.

Jason Wagner (00:52):
We talked yesterday and the first thing
you said to me was I'm fed up,and can you tell us a little bit
?
What is it that you're fed upwith, Can?

Leslie Collazo (01:05):
you tell us a little bit like what is it that
you're fed up with?
I just feel, generally, ourcity and our state has been
headed in the wrong directionfor a few years.
I didn't realize how bad of aposition we were in until I
became a homeowner and until mychildren entered Chicago public

(01:28):
schools and I felt that I hadjust had enough with being
pushed in a direction that Ifelt me and my family could not
be in.
We were on a path that didn'talign with who we are as a
family and it didn't align withour values any longer.

(01:52):
And feeling like expressingthat and going against the grain
, being judged and being labeledas something that we weren't
just for standing up for who weare and what we believe in.
And I reached the point where Ifelt like I can no longer sit on

(02:16):
the sidelines and watch thiscity and state going up in
flames is how I viewed it andhow I still view it, and I have
to jump in somehow and I have todo something about it, because
that's who Leslie is.
She's a doer.
Okay, everyone knows.
You give me a task list.
It's as good as done.
And I couldn't.

(02:38):
I couldn't sit around anymore.
I had to do something and Ifelt like those who are creating
the rules and forcing us tolive by these rules.
You know, they're not therepermanently and we have a voice
and we have a way to changethings.
And this is the way that Ichose to jump in the race and

(02:59):
jump into the game and see if wecan turn things around.
I have a lot of hope that wecan.

Jason Wagner (03:05):
You're running as a Republican.
How do you do that in the cityof Chicago and the surrounding
suburbs?

Leslie Collazo (03:12):
You have to have a tenacity and you have to have
what I call thick skin and asoft heart.
You have to know who you areand you have to have a level of
faith that is deep and wide, andI wasn't always a Republican
and I'd love to share that story.

Rachel Wagner (03:33):
Oh, I can't wait to hear this, oh yeah.

Leslie Collazo (03:35):
So, being born and raised in the city of
Chicago, I am Puerto Rican and Iwas raised in a very strong
Christian family, and I wasraised in a very strong
Christian family.
But Latinos are basically Idon't want to say taught, but
it's inferred that you are aDemocrat because the Democratic
Party is the party for theworking class.

(03:57):
It was the party for minorities.
They fight for our rights.
They really push to make surethat we get what we need as
Latinos or whatever the case maybe, and it was almost like I
was never told that, it was justassumed.
You know that that that's whatwe are Latinos, as you know,
we're Democrats and we they'refighting for us, the little guy.

(04:20):
But being born and raised in a,in this family, like, with very
strong Christian values and allthese things, I was the one who
voted for Obama in 2008.

Jason Wagner (04:31):
So you guys are in college.

Leslie Collazo (04:32):
At that time I'm already an adult and a new mom
and he comes in with all of hischange and hope and I'm going
yes, this, this guy is it, he'sawesome.
And I voted for him twice.
And then, as a mom and a newworking mom which was a new

(04:52):
thing for me in my life as wellI began to experience the
democratic policies as an adult.
So it was no longer this coolthing to be a Democrat and be
for the people.
I was like, oh, now I'm anadult, working, I'm a mom and

(05:13):
I'm living under these policiesand I don't like these policies.
Specifically, the one Iexperienced was it was in
regards to Obamacare, and Ibelieve there's some part in the
law you know don't quote me onthis, but this was real.
I believe there's some part inthe law and don't quote me on
this, but this was real that ifyou weren't insured, when you
become insured, you had to paypremiums for the months that you
weren't insured.
So I'm entering a new job, Ifinally have health insurance

(05:37):
and, with my husband beingself-employed, health insurance
is always a tricky thing for afamily like ours, as I'm sure
you know.

Jason Wagner (05:44):
We know that exact thing.

Leslie Collazo (05:47):
So here I am, starting a new job.
I'm like this is a good wageand I now have to pay six months
of insurance premiums formonths that I was not covered
and for a mom working, that's alot of money.
I wasn't sick, I didn't go tothe doctor, I never went to the

(06:07):
hospital and I felt like I don'tlike how that felt.
Your hand is in my pocket,taking money out that I need for
my family to cover me forinsurance that I didn't need.
I'm like, okay, that doesn'tmake sense.
But here we are.
So that's when I begin to askquestions.

Jason Wagner (06:23):
That's when I begin to ask questions.

Leslie Collazo (06:24):
The next election came around and it was
Hillary Clinton against DonaldTrump, and I can't give you
specific reasons why, but Icould not vote for Hillary
Clinton.

(06:44):
I just felt like this woman isnothing that I want for my life,
my future, and I had alreadyhad these feelings about these
democratic policies and how it'skind of like not working for me
.
And I voted for Donald Trump in2016 by default, because I felt
that he was the lesser of twoevils and my thought at the time
was like, well, ronald Reaganwas an actor and he was a good
president, so maybe this TV guyor real estate mogul.

Jason Wagner (07:07):
Maybe he'll be good.

Leslie Collazo (07:08):
I don't know Anything's better than Hillary
is what I was thinking at thetime.
So he gets elected.
We have our four years withDonald Trump and in those four
years I managed to.
I keep saying I, but I have tosay we, because I have to give
my husband a lot of credit.
I don't do anything on my ownand I'm not even here without

(07:29):
him.
So just going to throw that inthere we, we bought our first
home.
We bought one earlier on in ourmarriage, but that was before
2008.
So I feel like nothing reallymatters before 2008.
I don't know why, in my mind,that happens before 2008.
I don't know why in my mindthat happens, but as a married
couple with children living inthe city of Chicago, we bought

(07:50):
our first home in 2020.
My husband is a veteran and hewas able to, as a lender as well
, really set us up to have thebest situation to buy that home.
We couldn't purchase in thecity where we wanted.
We felt that the homes werejust too expensive, so we
decided to move a little furtherwest, but you know, within a
few minutes from where we wereliving at the time and we were

(08:13):
able to buy a home greatinterest rate.
We were able to do really wellin real estate and lending
during those years.
We had very little little debtand our savings were the most we
had ever had as a marriedcouple and I felt like, wow,
this we can really get ahead,like we're doing really well

(08:34):
right now.
We're working hard, we'rehustling and simultaneously I am
working with my kids, makingsure we can get them in the best
schools in Chicago selectiveenrollment schools because I
felt that that was going to bethe best option for them and

(08:56):
they had the.
They have the capacity to do it.
So we feel like we're settled.
Yeah, we're feeling good.
Yeah, now we're in a newneighborhood, a little different
than what we're used to.
It's a very diverseneighborhood in the North Austin
area, but we love our block, welove our neighbors, we love
that we have access to, you know, coffee shops and grocery
stores within walking distanceand we feel okay with, you know,
having our kids hang outoutside or in our yard or

(09:17):
whatever the case may be.
But I also felt like thisneighborhood it can be a little
better, it can be a littlecleaner.
I think we can, you know, put alittle effort in and let the
community know, hey, we can puta little more effort here and
really make this neighborhoodgreat.
It's good, but I think it canbe better.
And so I started to just getactive in my community and

(09:40):
making sure that trash waspicked up, know, there was pride
of ownership and people aretaking care of their properties
and, you know, we put together ablock party and just meet your
neighbors and we're here now andjust forming a sense of
community.
And I reached a point where,under the current administration

(10:01):
, when the Obama-Harrisadministration took office,
everything is different.
We're not in that same goodposition that we were in a few
years ago, and it almost seemsto me like everything is
backwards, everything is insideout and not the way that it

(10:21):
should be.
So we are experiencing a lot ofhomelessness, drug addicts in
our area.
We're experiencing a lot ofillegal migrants in our
neighborhoods.
Every time we drive past theDepartment of Human Services
offices there are lines aroundthe corner.

(10:42):
There are homeless tentencampments in Humboldt Park,
which is where we drive by everyday.
Puerto Rican neighborhood, whereyou know we hang out a lot
sometimes, you know, especiallyduring summer and the fest.
So I've just reached the pointwhere I'm looking around and I'm
going what happened?
How did we get here?
From my experience, chicago isone of the greatest cities in

(11:05):
the world.
I mean, we have amazingarchitecture, amazing food,
amazing communities.
You know everyone wants to bein Chicago, right?
People who live outside ofChicago say they're from Chicago
, so that you could seem likeyou're from Chicago right, yes.

(11:48):
So the reason why I decided tochange from being a Democrat to
a Republican was because whenthe city was enforcing passport
vaccine passports is what I'mgoing to call it- to eat at
restaurants in my neighborhood.
I felt that that was very wrong.
I had to prove that I wasvaccinated to eat at a
restaurant that we were, youknow, patrons of for years, and
I felt that is wrong.
I feel like that should not bethe case right now.
How did we get here?
And I started to do my research.
How did we get here and Istarted to do my research.
I started to ask questions andI will do.
And what happened was Iaccidentally red-pilled myself,

(12:13):
as some people have said?

Rachel Wagner (12:15):
Have you heard that?
Oh, yes.

Leslie Collazo (12:17):
Take the red pill.
Take the red pill.
And I was like, oh my God, I'mnot a Democrat, I'm a Republican
.
So I sent a text to my wholefamily.
I said, guys, I'm coming out ofthe closet.

Jason Wagner (12:31):
Isn't this funny, rach?
We were just talking about this.
It's like when people shift,there is something that happens
where we need to tell the worldand we take so much pride in
that acknowledgement, and you goon.

Leslie Collazo (12:42):
Absolutely Go on .
I sent out a text and our youknow, every family has their
group chat Right and I was like,guys, I have an announcement
from this day forward, I am aRepublican.

Rachel Wagner (12:56):
What was the response to that?

Leslie Collazo (12:58):
They're like cool bro yeah.
We've been where have you been?
You're behind the game.
Yeah, we've been.
Where have you been?

Jason Wagner (13:04):
You're behind the game Really.

Leslie Collazo (13:05):
Yeah, welcome my husband.
As a veteran and as aCuban-American, he's been a
Republican, you know, the wholetime.
I think he was just letting meride it out and I think he
thought well, she'll learn, youknow, and I did, and that's when

(13:27):
I made the switch and I don'twant to say that I hid the fact
that I was Republican To myfamily.
I felt like I could just comeout and say it.
The challenge has been thelabels that are placed on you
when you say you are Republicanare unfair.
Now I will say that and I saythis in some of my speeches when
I'm out campaigning a lot.
My perception of the RepublicanParty was that it was the party

(13:49):
for old, rich white guys.
That's what's put out there forpeople like me, I guess, and my
message today is this is thenew face of the Republican Party
.
It's not for old, rich, racistwhite guys any longer.
No, I am a Puerto Rican fromthe city of Chicago who was

(14:12):
raised in a very strongChristian family, and I'm not
loyal to a party.
I'm loyal to my values, and myvalues are aligning closer to
the Republican Party than theparty that I was in before, and
that's my message today andbecause I feel very confident in

(14:32):
who I am, who I was raised tobe, confident in my faith.
I feel like I'm okay to say thatand if you want to label me as
something, then that's on you.
But this is who I am.
Get to know me.
You will know that I'm not anyof the labels people want to put
on a Republican.
If anything, I feel I want tostand up and fight for people,

(14:58):
especially people in mycommunity who are suffering, or
people in my community who,economically, are just not
making ends meet, or people whohave been victimized, and in the
society we live in today, it'salmost like the perpetrators are
the ones who people sympathizewith more than an actual victim.
What is that about?

(15:18):
That's not okay.
So that's my message.
That's how I got here.
So that's that's my message.
That's how I got here.
And, being a republican in thecity of chicago, I want to say
there are more of us out there,yeah than they care to admit
yeah and that's okay.
You know, if they feel that theyneed to keep that quiet to
maintain peace in their life,that's that's.

(15:40):
We live in a free country.
Sure you're free to do that.

Jason Wagner (15:43):
Yeah.

Leslie Collazo (15:43):
I'm okay with rattling the cage a little bit
and I just I want things tochange and I want to make them
better for everyone, not justfor a certain group.

Jason Wagner (15:53):
Well, you have the confidence, and the confidence
I can tell it came from youracknowledgement of a personal
situation where you feltimpacted and you're like this is
no longer okay and I haven'tbeen aligning with these values
that you guys bring.
And this side actually doesbring it.
And I think when people gothrough that, what has

(16:16):
personally happened to me and myfamily, and they kind of
dissected a little bit and theydo an analysis and they're just
like, oh Well, I feel so muchconfident in this choice because
it just makes sense.
You said things are backwardsand inside out there's a lot of
things that are really backwards, that all came within the last
four years, and I mean fromChicago politics, state politics

(16:38):
, all the way up to the federalstuff.
I mean it all trickles down.
Have you seen any people thatare within your community kind
of having the same identityshift?

Leslie Collazo (16:49):
If it's happening, they're not telling
anyone about it and I feel likepeople are going to bring that
feeling to the ballot box.
And Illinois is such a strong,democratic political place I
mean it has a foothold and Iwant to say that people who feel

(17:15):
left out, their voice will beheard at the ballot box, but
they're keeping it to themselves.
They don't.
There's no confidence that theycan openly express their views.
Right now Especially, you know,if you're historically known to
vote in one way and you decideyou're going to vote another way

(17:36):
, it's almost like selling out.
That feeling of selling outreally can hurt someone to the
point where they just prefer notto participate in the process
at all.
And we don't want that either.

Jason Wagner (17:48):
Right Right, yeah so how do you get people to not
stay home and do nothing Right?
How do you get those peoplethat I've actually had?
A personal friend of mine, oneof my best friends.
He said there's no point in mevoting because I'm in a blue
state.
There's no changing that.
I hear that a lot.

Rachel Wagner (18:06):
And I feel like I even feel that way sometimes of
like our vote doesn't reallymatter.
But really early on in youspeaking, you said that you're
like these people are only therebecause we voted them in, like
they're not there forever.
We can change it, and so I likethat progression.

Leslie Collazo (18:27):
Especially when you see that it's only a
difference of a few hundred orthousand votes.
Now, the reason I decided torun for state representative is
because no one was runningagainst the incumbent, so he
automatically guaranteed hisseat for another two years by
being the only one on the ballot.
And I said no way, Jose,absolutely not.
We are going to do somethingabout.

(18:47):
We're going to give folks achoice.
You're not just going to behanded your seat for another two
years to continue pushing thesedemocratic policies down our
throats that we have to live by.
And I jumped in on the raceafter the primary, in a process
called being slated, andbasically it is a constitutional

(19:07):
right that if someone wants torun, they can within a certain
timeframe after the primary.
You still have to get yourpetitions and do your filings.
You have to follow all the samerules.
You're just doing it after theprimary.
So I decided I'm going to jumpin on the race because I don't
want this person to think thathe's got it in the bag for

(19:28):
another two years.

Rachel Wagner (19:29):
There was no Republican running during the
primary whatsoever, it was justhim as the incumbent Democrat
Correct.

Leslie Collazo (19:36):
So I began the process.
I was vetted and I waspetitioning for signatures.
I was about two months in andGovernor Pritzker signed a bill
overnight eliminating theslating process completely,
while we were in the middle ofthe process.
So the organizations that I wasworking with to get on the

(19:59):
ballot they called me and theysaid, hey, we need to put a
pause on what you're doingBecause we don't know if you're
breaking the law by continuingto get petitions and trying to
get on the ballot.
So that kind of stopped me inmy tracks.
And then I really got pissedoff because I felt like I'm not
a politician, I am a wife, mom,citizen, pays her taxes.

(20:23):
I follow the rules.
I am a wife, mom, citizen, paysher taxes, I follow the rules.
I feel like we are completelyoverlooked and we're just going
to continue to do the same thingover and over again.
And then you're going to try totake me out in the process.
And if you know Leslie Colazo,I'm going to tell you right now
she is not going to lay down tothat.

(20:46):
So the opportunity came wherethe Liberty Justice Center asked
me if I would be theirprincipal plaintiff in a lawsuit
, because they felt that thiswas unconstitutional.
And I said yes, and they went.
They fought in Springfield andthe judges ruled that it was
unconstitutional for them topass that bill, specifically

(21:08):
because it was only for, like acertain part of the government,
like the house.
It wasn't across the board.
So it just seemed very muchlike you're changing the rules
of the game in the middle of thegame so that you can just be
guaranteed a seat.
You won't have to campaign orraise money or go door knocking,
or you won't have to put thework in to earn a vote because
you're the only one on theballot.
And bringing another candidateinto the mix at that point of

(21:31):
the race, I'm sure it can befrustrating, on top of the fact
that it's a Republican candidate.
With the way things are goingthese days, people are ready to
vote different.
They really are, and if theyhave that option, they may go
with that option.
So that was a hurdle that I hadto get through.
It did set me back by a fewmonths, but we were successful

(21:52):
and I am on the ballot, that'samazing.

Rachel Wagner (21:54):
Yeah, what a story.
Good for you, it's incredible.

Jason Wagner (21:57):
That's awesome.

Leslie Collazo (21:58):
It had an opposite effect.
I think they were trying tojust eliminate me, but what it
did is create more media.
You know I had articles writtenabout it, that I was able to
share interviews and getting mystory out there.
So it actually helped me then,you know, rather than hurt me.

Jason Wagner (22:16):
Yeah, I mean, it's just clearly unfair.
You know, and I think that'swhat a lot of voters have been
recognizing, there's been a lotof unfairness that has happened
lately and that's a great localexample of the unfairness
actually occurring.
Yes and you winning.
Yes and you calling it out andwinning.

Leslie Collazo (22:37):
Yes, that's incredible.
I don't know how I got hereexactly, but I do know that
every step of the way, wheneverI hit a crossroad, I stop and I
go.
Okay, I can only do so much.
I only have enough financebehind me and support behind me.

(22:57):
I really am depending on God inthis process and I don't
necessarily lead this campaignwith my faith, but it's a part
of who I am and because of thatfaith I'm able to keep going,
and then something will happenwhere it's like another door has
opened that I get to walkthrough, like me being here

(23:17):
today.
This was a door that opened, andI never intended on actually
being a part of a podcast.
It's something that I wanted todo, and the fact that I'm here
today, it's just another exampleof every door that has been
open for me in this process.
So here I am and early votingstarted yesterday, and to hear
rumors that people are votingfor me and I just jumped into

(23:39):
this race, you know, earlierthis year, I think is pretty
remarkable and exciting andgives me a lot of hope for our
city and our state.

Jason Wagner (23:48):
Yeah, yeah, oh, that's amazing, go ahead.

Rachel Wagner (23:50):
I was going to say, can we maybe talk a little
bit more specifically about theposition itself, the district
that you're covering, thoseareas?
Because I think oftentimes whenwe get in these big elections
the smaller races aren't reallypaid attention to.
Like you had said, it's only acouple hundred to a few thousand
votes that are this is comingdown to, and I think it comes

(24:11):
from a place of people notreally knowing, like, what that
position is or what they do, andcertainly you know enough about
the people running.
So could you share a little bitabout where is the eighth
district?
I know we said Chicago, butthere's some other areas it
covers.
And then, what is a staterepresentative?
What do they do?
What are you going to be a partof?

Leslie Collazo (24:29):
Yeah, great question.
So the 8th District has partsof Chicago, specifically in the
North Austin and Austinneighborhood in Chicago, and
then it has parts of Oak Park,Berwyn, LaGrange Park, LaGrange,
parts of Western Springs,Hodgkins countryside and a

(24:52):
little bit of Broadview.
It's a very gerrymandereddistrict, is how I'll describe
it.
Oak Park specifically, I thinkthere's maybe like 10 blocks
that touch the district, whichis a very small area, and I
think the problems that touchthe district they're not all the
same.

Rachel Wagner (25:12):
Yeah, I was going to say that's interesting,
cause if you think about I meanschool wise those are very
different districts, right?
Not everybody's a part of CPSand they don't all have the same
problem.
Right, that's very interesting,that that's the district.

Leslie Collazo (25:59):
It is, and because I live in the North
Austin neighborhood, theproblems that I experience may
not an easy area to live.
You know, I live very nervouslysometimes when my daughter has.
They can just walk home fromschool and everything's fine.
And that's one thing withpublic safety.
If I call 911 because I'm inthe middle of an emergency, I
need my police to show up asquickly as possible, and I feel
like, with everything that'shappened in the last few years,

(26:22):
the police have really gotten abad rap happened in the last few
years.
The police have really gotten abad rap.
Okay, and one thing I findinteresting is that you know
they have body cams that theywanted, right, and with these
body cams they captureeverything.
And then they wanted to takethe body cams away because they
really weren't working in theway that they thought they would
be working.
They thought they would catchmore police officers hurting

(26:45):
someone who asked for helpversus the person hurting the
police officer.
And now the police are sayingno, no, no, you wanted the body
cams.
We're keeping the body cams andI think they're important for
transparency and it's importantfor us to see with our own eyes
what really actually happened,and even though we have footage

(27:05):
of things, it's important for usto see with our own eyes what
really actually happened.
And even though we have footageof things, it's still debatable
.
Like who was right, who waswrong.
Was that called for?
Was it not?
So for me specifically, publicsafety is like a number one
priority because of where I liveand because what we have to
deal with and because we needour police, and because what we

(27:30):
have to deal with and because weneed our police if something
happens who do I call to comehelp?
me in a situation there's no onebut 911 if they can get to me
on time, you know.
So I really feel like, assomeone who has law enforcement
in my family and people who haveserved our country in the
military, I really feel thatit's important to support our
first responders, and if youlive in an area like I do, we
need them.
I think oversight is importantand I think transparency is

(27:55):
important, and I think we needto be investing in technology.
That's important to solvecrimes, and I'm not trying to be
one-sided about that.
I feel like I do see allperspectives, but that's one
point that I think is reallyhurting us in the city
specifically, and, to answeryour question, at the state

(28:15):
level, you're basically creatinglaws for people to abide by, or
creating laws or changing lawsthat can either help us or hurt
us, depending on how you look atit.
Regardless of what the billsare and what these laws are,
they cost money and we, thepeople, are the ones who provide

(28:38):
the money, through our incometaxes, for these programs or
these laws to go into effect,for these programs or these laws
to go into effect, and I'm notin agreement with how our
government spends our moneysometimes, and I feel like the
government needs to do a betterjob informing people on where
their tax dollars are going andhow they're being spent before

(29:01):
they're spent, not after thefact.
And to that point I feel likeIllinois being a sanctuary state
has really hurt us and thereare bills being proposed to
reverse that, and I want to getbehind that.
I am all for legal immigrationto our country.

(29:21):
Who wouldn't want to be a partof this country?
But it's important to knowwho's coming.
Where you you going to live,how are you going to support
yourself?
We need to know those thingsbecause we want to assimilate
you into this great Americanculture.
But in the way it's happened inthe last few years has hurt us,
in my opinion, tremendously.
My community's really upsetwith how much funding has gone

(29:43):
to solve this sanctuary cityproblem and how those resources
were not available to them, andthis is why they're deciding to
vote the other way this time,because they're now realizing
that their own policies arehurting them more and more.

Jason Wagner (30:00):
Can you give us some specific examples of some
of those resources that themigrants have been receiving,
and maybe the other constituentsin the areas are not?

Leslie Collazo (30:14):
So for a family like I don't want to say I'm
from a middle class family.
I feel like that line has beenused too many times lately.

Jason Wagner (30:21):
I love it.
You can still use it, though.

Leslie Collazo (30:24):
I'm from a middle class family.
You know, as a part of themiddle class, I was not only
raised in it, but I'm still init.
I'm not a millionaire today andI can say I was, I still am in
the middle class.
So when I go shopping and I goto buy my groceries, I have to.
You know I can't get theorganic produce Sometimes.
Sometimes I have to just getwhatever's on sale and the

(30:46):
prices have to.
You know I can't get theorganic produce sometimes.
Sometimes I have to just getwhatever's on sale and the
prices of things.
You know I do the groceryshopping, as I'm sure many of
your listeners do, and you knowthey have felt the pain of a
simple thing like buying yourgroceries and to see that there
are people receiving governmentfunding for that when it's not

(31:09):
available to people who coulduse it.
That can be frustrating.
Now, do we want people not tohave access at all?
I don't want to see peoplestarving in our streets either.
So it's just a part of thisbigger issue that we didn't
think this thing all the waythrough.
And what was the plan forbecoming this sanctuary city?

(31:32):
So that's just one smallexample of how people are
frustrated because you knowthere are multiple generations
living together trying to makeends meet and you know they all
put their money together andthey're trying to survive and
they may not qualify for some ofthe government help that is
available to them.
So this is one thing.

(31:53):
The other part that I findreally interesting is to see
people being given funds topurchase cars.
It's a real issue in myneighborhood.
So you'll see, you know, whenyou purchase a new car you have
a temporary plate or no plate atall, which, in my opinion, I'm
like I pay so much money to justget a city sticker and our

(32:14):
registration every year, you seecars just rolling around, no
license plate, no city sticker,no seat belts, kids riding in
cars without car seats, babiesbeing held in the front seat
Things that, as Americans, weknow.
You just don't do so, seeingthese things, and go hey guys,

(32:34):
you know that that child needsto be in a car seat, you know?
Hey, roll your window down.
I'm doing this because I'm old.
It's not like a button to lowerthe window.
I remember that.
I remember that it's not like abutton to lower the window.
I remember that Lower yourwindow, hey, that that baby
needs to be in a car seat, right, you know just things like that

(32:57):
that we see.

Rachel Wagner (32:57):
I've seen both of those things too recently,
where I saw somebody holding ababy in the front seat of the
car just over here I was tellingyou about that and I've seen
kids just kind of floppingaround in the backseat, you know
, without seatbelts, and thoseare things I haven't seen for
probably 20 years, cause I thinkthat did happen when I was a
kid, you know we'd be on roadtrips and my parents would let
me play in the backseat withouta seatbelt, but I mean that
ended, I mean probably middleschool age, and then everybody

(33:18):
was in a car seat in the backand everybody had seatbelts on.
So to see that again, I waslike, well, where am I?

Leslie Collazo (33:25):
It was just crazy and it's dangerous.

Rachel Wagner (33:28):
Oh, it's so dangerous.

Leslie Collazo (33:30):
You know, we know what the rules are because
we live here and we're taughtthe rules of the road and you go
get your license and you takethe test and you know even some
of our you know driving lawsaren't really respected or
honored, so but I'm notunderstanding how we got here,

(33:51):
you know, and to see cars alsobeing used as a place to hang
out, and it's something that wesee in our community.
We have, you know, a little bitof a shopping mall close by and
you'll see people hanging outin their cars and drinking and
you know it's a school night,there's kids out.
You know it's late and I'm just, this is not the American way.

Rachel Wagner (34:16):
Can you pinpoint when you started to see these
changes happen?

Leslie Collazo (34:31):
happen.
Yes, it was in 2021.
We were in our new home and westarted noticing groups of women
with children tied to theirback, using blankets or
backpacks, selling water,selling Gatorade, selling candy,
and also small children five,six, seven years old in the I
don't want to say in the median,the street, selling items.

(34:53):
And, as a mom, I would not beokay with having my child
standing in the middle of thestreet selling anything.
It's super dangerous.
And I started to notice, likewhere did this come from?
You know, you're hearing aboutthe buses being, you know,
coming through Chicago orwhatever the case may be, even

(35:16):
families and people sleeping onthe floor of police stations.
You know, when I started tohear stories about that, I was
like that's not real.

Rachel Wagner (35:32):
Not in America, where I live, we don't do that
and and it was, it was a reality, you know, we saw that.
So we just moved.
About a year ago we were in theJefferson Park area and I
remember driving by the policestation there off Milwaukee and
it was just one day.
I just happened to look overand people were just lined up in
sleeping bags and there wereall these bikes and like little
kid, like toddler toys, outsideparked, you know, right in front

(35:53):
of the police station and I waslike oh my, oh, my gosh, like I
couldn't believe it, because Ialso was kind of like okay, like
maybe that's happening downtownin the loop, but probably not
some of the other neighborhoods.
And it was right there, it'sstill there.
It's been several years ofpeople just sleeping in the
lobby of the police station.
I couldn't believe it.
And people don't really believeme when I share that either.

(36:14):
They're like what?
No, like literally that ishappening and it's full, they
are full.

Leslie Collazo (36:22):
It is.
There's a headline that I readthis morning or last night that
they are making some changesaround this in the city of
Chicago, where now they aregoing to take migrants for I
don't fully agree with that word, I feel like that word is not
accurate, but we'll use it inthis case that they're going to

(36:45):
combine them with the homelesscommunity and I I really have to
question this plan and I feellike citizens taxpaying citizens
are asking a lot of questionsand now these administrations
are trying to shift.
But I mean, we're in 2024.
I started noticing this in 2021.

(37:07):
We're three and a half, almostfour years into this and now
we're changing the plan.
So I don't think ouradministration really has a
handle on what's going on andthat may be a conversation for
another day as far as,specifically, the city of
Chicago and Chicago politics,which, at the state level, may

(37:27):
not be any different, but weneed change.

Jason Wagner (37:30):
Yeah, so it seems like a lot of this conversation
so far has been talked aboutjust in terms of just public
safety, right it's.
You feel like the firstresponders maybe don't have
enough resources, they're notcoming quick enough.
We have a number of migrantsthat have come into the city.
They don't have places to liveand, and I will be honest, that

(37:53):
is a big, big concern for us andthat was a decision point where
my wife and I we moved ourfamily out of the city to go to
Arlington Heights here in thesuburbs, because we no longer
felt that, you know, you kind ofsaid you live a little
cautiously or just like you'realways watching your daughter

(38:14):
kind of come home from school.
We felt the same way just beingin our front yard sometimes.
Yeah, you know, and there's alot of people in chicago that
feel that way, because I've hadconversations with with people
there and you know, it caused usto make a choice to move away
from it and we considered ityeah we considered leaving the
state and a huge deciding factorfor that was whether or not our

(38:39):
children were going to attendselective enrollment schools in
the city of Chicago, and hadthey not tested in, we would not
be here.

Leslie Collazo (38:49):
I felt that a selective enrollment school
would at least provide them withthe level of academic rigor
that my children are capable of,would at least provide them
with the level of academic rigorthat my children are capable of
, and by them being accepted andentering those schools, we
decided to stay.
But had they not been accepted,we would have left.
I am not ready to give up onChicago and I'm not ready to

(39:11):
give up on Illinois just yet.
I've experienced our glory daysand I think we can get back
there.
I just think we need the rightpeople in power who really
listen and are doing what theyneed to do to help those who
want that.
There are a lot of people inChicago who are perfectly happy
with the way it's operatingright now.

(39:32):
I am not one of those peopleand I want to say that there are
more people in my camp than Imay even realize.

Jason Wagner (39:40):
As a state representative, is there
something that you can reallykind of push and help with in
terms of kind of public safety?

Leslie Collazo (39:48):
Yes, as far as the laws that are created with
things like how much funding isavailable, yes, and we all know
we need funding to hire more,and lowering the standard for
people to enter, you know, inlaw enforcement is not helping

(40:11):
us, and I think we need to keepthose standards high.
I think when people earn aneducation and they've put the
work in, they show the ethicthat's needed to serve publicly.
I think some politiciansprobably could use some of that,
to be honest.
But yeah, I mean we makedecisions as to where the flow

(40:33):
of money goes, and I thinkthat's always key.
Now, you know we have to.
I think politiciansspecifically need to remember
that we, the people, are theones who provide the money.
They just decide where it'sgoing to go, and I want to make
sure that things like publicsafety are funded.

Rachel Wagner (40:49):
Yeah, you've said that really well a couple times
.
Like there's no such thing asgovernment funded, right, it's
all taxpayer funded, so it isour money and we should care
where it's going.
We should have a say in whereit's going and we should have a
say in it before it's goingthere, right?
I think you've said that verywell a few times, I think with

(41:10):
that specifically.

Leslie Collazo (41:11):
It's been something I've been harping on,
because we need to remind theAmerican people that you are in
control.
Okay, If you're going to sitthis one out, you've
relinquished control.
But if you show up and vote forpeople who you've done a little
research, you know what theystand on, you know what they
want to do.
Get behind them and help putthem in office so that they can

(41:32):
make decisions that representyou versus their own interests
or another group that maybe youmay not align with.
It's important.

Rachel Wagner (41:39):
Are you seeing in other districts there being
competitive races happening, oris it mostly incumbents running
this election?

Leslie Collazo (41:47):
I think one of the challenges for Republicans
is that we don't receive as muchcampaign backing as we need,
campaign backing as we need, andwe don't raise anywhere near as
much money.
As you know, democraticpoliticians, unfortunately, it's

(42:08):
much easier for them to haveaccess to funding and with that,
with those campaign funds,you're able to get your message
out there.
You're able to, you know,recruit more technology or you
know there are many ways for youto use those campaign funds.
But I think that's one of thechallenges for us is no one
thinks you're going to win, sothey're not going to donate.
And I think that you know wecan challenge that a little bit.
I know we can.

(42:28):
If we, you know, get togetherand if we back each other up, we
can make something happen.

Rachel Wagner (42:35):
Yeah.

Jason Wagner (42:35):
I kind of want to talk about your opponent here,
lashawn Ford, and he has been inthis seat since 2007, which
I've noticed, so he's been therefor some time.
Is there anything that youcould be a little critical on in
terms of what he has done thatmaybe you would do the opposite
of?
Yeah.

Leslie Collazo (42:55):
So I had a debate with LaShawn last month.
The League of Women's Voters ofLaGrange, I believe, is I hope
I didn't say that wrong, but wehad a debate and it was my first
time, you know, interactingwith him and LaShawn's a really
nice guy.
Okay, like I'm not the personwho wants to like bash my, bash
my opponent, like it's just,that's not who I am.

(43:16):
I think you know, on a personallevel, I hear nice things about
him.
I've never experienced it andeven in our debate he wrapped up
his final remarks with almostendorsing me, saying Leslie
Collazo is a model Americanwho's the perfect type of
candidate.
Like I was.
Like, okay, I just got endorsedby my mom.

(43:38):
This is interesting.

Rachel Wagner (43:39):
I'm like am.

Leslie Collazo (43:40):
I that likable, didn't know it, but now I do.
One of the things that I feelmakes a huge difference between
LaShawn and I is I reallybelieve in small businesses.
Okay, I feel like they're theunderdog and I feel like small
business owners.
They launch their businessesout of a passion or just

(44:03):
something in them that reallyled them to, you know, to launch
this business.
And you know they're, they'rethe small guy, and I feel like
smaller communities or even in,you know, in some of the towns
that are in our district, youhave people who run dog grooming
businesses or a laundromat or aCrossFit gym or I mean, you

(44:24):
name it a cupcake shop, andthese small businesses they add
to their communities.
And it is so tough to run abusiness in Illinois it really
is.
And LaShawn did not sign anylegislation to support small
businesses and I feel that thatwas a big fail on his part.

(44:45):
And in our debate he mentionshow small businesses is one of
his top agendas, you know topic,or one of the drivers for his
you know, next two years inoffice, and I had to challenge
him in our debate and say, yes,but you didn't sign legislation
to help small businesses whoneed the help.

(45:06):
So I feel like that's onedifferentiator between us Also.
I think he's just so used tobeing in office and so used to
just counting on, you know,people in the Austin community
to vote for him that you know.
I really haven't heard muchfrom from him.
I did receive, you know, somemailers about go get your cancer

(45:26):
screening, you know, and don'tforget, school starts next month
or whatever the case may be.
I was like, oh, this is nice.
I finally heard from my statelegislature legislator.
You know, after living here forfour years, I never I didn't
even know who he was until Imoved into the area.
So he's tried to run in otherraces.
I think he has aspirations to,you know, run for other seats in

(45:48):
the future.
So I I don't know how hispolitical career will, you know,
advance, but I'm hoping that Ican take him out this time and
give him the time and space heneeds so he can go pursue some
of his other endeavors.
So it's interesting he and Iare both former educators and
we're both realtors and we'reboth running for the same seat.

Rachel Wagner (46:10):
That is very interesting.
We took note of that.

Jason Wagner (46:29):
We did take note of that as well is a challenge
from newcomer Colasso, a realestate agent.
You just said you're actuallyboth real estate agents.
Is it weird that they arecalling you a real estate agent
in kind of this headline?

Leslie Collazo (46:46):
I think that's all they have to go on, because
they don't know who I am.
I think that it's unfair toposition me as just a real
estate agent.

Jason Wagner (46:55):
it's unfair to position me as just a real
estate agent.

Leslie Collazo (46:57):
No, it doesn't say just but but.

Jason Wagner (46:58):
But they do but that that's the way I read it,
you know tell me your thoughtsabout it.
Well, because I was the same.
I was the same way.
I'm like why are they callingher a real estate agent in the
headline, when then I did alittle digging and I saw, well,
a licensed real estate broker?
Why isn't it two real estateagents?

Leslie Collazo (47:16):
That would have been a much more interesting
headline, right.

Jason Wagner (47:20):
It's almost like they're painting you as you're
just a real estate agent andlike there's a connotation of
like real estate agents right?

Rachel Wagner (47:26):
Jason took a little offense.
Are you all right?
Because you?

Jason Wagner (47:30):
know real estate agents.
All they do is open doors.
They don't know anything.
Right, I'm a smart real estateagent, as I know you are, and
you need some brains to be areal estate agent.
Heck, yeah, right, but that issometimes the idea is, when you
say use car salesman, right, youhave a real estate agent.
Sometimes they fit in the sameconversation and it's
unfortunate because when I hearthat it's like if you think that

(47:53):
way about your real estateagent, you haven't met the right
one.

Leslie Collazo (47:55):
That it's like, if you think that way about your
real estate agent.

Jason Wagner (47:58):
You haven't met the right one, correct, and so I
think you have and you've beeningrained in the whole community
, you've been helping peopleattain home ownership.
I mean, that's kind of wouldyou mind if we kind of talk a
little bit about that?
Home ownership is actuallyactually a really hard thing to
achieve right now yeah hardthing to achieve right now.

(48:24):
Is there anything from yourpotential seat here that maybe
you can assist people withachieving the American dream of
getting homeownership?
Is there anything that you cankind of maybe help people find
opportunity with that?

Leslie Collazo (48:33):
Yeah, absolutely , because I'm still practicing
while in this process.
One of the biggest challengesfor buyers specifically is you
know they can afford a home in acertain price point, but they
can't afford the taxes.

Jason Wagner (48:48):
Yeah.

Leslie Collazo (48:49):
Okay, and because of how high the taxes
are, like, they're not eligibleto financially afford a home in
the area that they want to be in.
That's a problem, and that's aproblem that can be addressed.
You know, at the governmentlevel, Right, especially one of
my clients who recentlypurchased in the South suburbs,
and you know some of thechallenges that they've had down

(49:11):
there, as I'm sure you've heard, like with property taxes and
even the misuse of governmentfunds and all the shenanigans is
what I'll call them.
I do feel like there is anopportunity for us to help.
Now here's the thing theycontinue to use our property
taxes as a bank, increasing themwhen they need more funding.

(49:31):
I think we need to really stopthat.
And there are homes that areavailable that may be in a price
point, but the property taxeshave just become so high that
it's not attainable.
It's not doable.
And does your property tax billever go down?

(49:52):
Can you put a freeze on those?
Yeah, when you're 60 plus, youknow, as a senior, whatever the
case may be, but I feel likethis is an opportunity where we
can really help people out if wecan just find other ways to
generate revenue in our stateand not have to constantly be
raising taxes on people who wantto, you know, live in their own

(50:15):
home.
So that's that's one area thatI think we really need to clean
up.

Rachel Wagner (50:19):
Isn't there something on the ballot this
year that Illinois has broughtforth regarding regarding real
estate taxes?
It's like the millionaire tax,where they want to.

Jason Wagner (50:30):
That one was already shut down.

Rachel Wagner (50:31):
Oh, it was shut down, but I don't know there are
three.

Jason Wagner (50:33):
There are three questions that are going to be
on the ballot this year.
Maybe you you know what theyare.

Leslie Collazo (50:37):
Yes, I can't think of the three off the top
of my head right now.
I do know that you want to sayno to all three, so that's as
much as I'll say.
And what I will say about thosequestions is they're always
written in a way that soundslike you should say yes to this.
Yes, absolutely.
Do your homework and post someinformation on those three
questions.

(50:57):
They're not questions toactually change a law or
anything.
They're just trying to poll youat that point to see what
direction things should go.
Oh, they're poll questions.
They're intended to just kindof get a feel for what Americans
are thinking in regards tothose three areas.

Jason Wagner (51:15):
Yeah, yeah, so we'll see those Interesting.

Rachel Wagner (51:21):
Can we go back a little bit to the small business
conversation?
You were talking about that andbeing in Illinois during and
post COVID.
Small businesses were impactedquite a bit with that.
Can you speak to a little bitwhat, how maybe you would have
handled that differently if youwould have and then going
forward, how you want to supportor incentivize people to open
small businesses here.
Because you said it's a toughstate.

Leslie Collazo (51:42):
It is.
There's just a lot ofbureaucracy around, you know,
around it, not so much in, maybe, other towns outside of Chicago
, but one of the things thathappened with raising minimum
wage is paying that $15 an hourwage.
It really hurt a lot ofbusinesses having to pay
employees at that point, pricepoint or I don't know wage point

(52:04):
, for lack of a better way ofputting it it really did put a
strain on small businesses.
So during COVID I mean COVIDwas just I think it was so
eye-opening for everybody and Ido understand the measures that
were taken around the time thatyou know it made itself present

(52:26):
and I do know that a lot ofpeople you know did have.
You know we did have casualtiesfrom COVID.
There were people who you knowhad underlying conditions and I
feel like we did a good job whenit made itself known in just
making sure we can figure outhow do we beat this, and that

(52:50):
was all great took COVID to apoint where it was almost
ridiculous in a sense.
Shaming people who would not getvaccinated or refuse to be
vaccinated to me was shamefulitself.
I don't know if you've heard ofthis story of there was a young

(53:11):
man who attended a privateschool in Chicago who was being
bullied, saying that he wasn'tvaccinated.
He was in fact vaccinated, buthe was being bullied to the
point where he took his own lifeat the age of 15.
And that, to me, is such anunfortunate, sad, terrible
situation where we were shamingpeople to that extent we were

(53:33):
firing people who didn't want toget vaccinated.
I'm saying we, like I, did it.
I just feel like as a city, as astate, as a people, we should
not have been doing that and Ithink that that was really wrong
.
And the way this ties back tosmall businesses is some small
businesses were defiant.
They didn't have to reallynecessarily follow the rules if

(53:56):
they didn't want to.
They had a price to pay becauseof that and I feel that that's
really honorable.
They took a stand, when youknow, going against the norm.
And because of those smallbusinesses, some of them
actually did well, because theywere the only bar that was open,
not asking for a vaccinepassport.

Rachel Wagner (54:14):
Right.

Leslie Collazo (54:14):
You know what I mean.
It's like if we wanted to gohang out, we were leaving the
city of Chicago and visitingother areas that we normally
wouldn't hang out at.
So I think some of the benefitsthat small businesses have is
more autonomy and more you knowflexibility and freedom and
they're not tied up in you knowbureaucracy and they can really
get creative around how they cangenerate you know more revenue

(54:37):
for their businesses and whichleads to you know more funding
for their towns or their cityand, essentially, for the state.

Rachel Wagner (54:44):
Yeah, I hadn't heard that story.
That's awful.

Jason Wagner (54:48):
Yeah, it's tragic.
You know everything thathappened during COVID in our
opinion as well we agree withyou on this this is that that
was the unveiling of a lot ofthings, that was the oversight
of the overreach that hasoccurred, and you know, we
didn't agree with that at alleither.
And it's it's nice to talk topeople that are in that same

(55:10):
boat, because a lot of times wefelt like we were by ourselves.
We were you know you talk toanybody.
It was.
That was peer pressure from themost extreme.
Yes, everybody's family memberswere convincing each other to
do this one thing and you know,if you stepped outside of that,
you were basically shunned.

(55:30):
Yes, that was discriminationlike we have not seen in a, you
know, in a recent timeframe.
Right, and so, yeah, that was,that was the unveiling, and I'm
glad that you bring that up.
You know you just actually Iwant to, I want to talk a little
bit about because you just gotendorsed by the Polish American
police association, which isamazing.

(55:52):
Can you talk about thatendorsement a little bit?

Leslie Collazo (55:55):
I didn't even know it was coming.
Remember when I told you thatthese doors just open up and I
get to walk through them?
That's just another example ofthat.
I didn't even know that theywere going to endorse me, so
that came from.
I have a family member who isactively in the police Chicago
Police Department and he sent methat information.

(56:17):
He said hey, by the way,they're endorsing you.
Here's your endorsement.
I said well, this is justanother one of those moments and
I've been very vocal about mysupport of the police.
And tomorrow night I have afundraiser at Rizzo's in
Wrigleyville where we are goingto be honoring and appreciating
our first responders and ourfrontline workers.

(56:38):
I feel like they deal with thepublic in a way that none of us
have to and their lives are putat risk every time they walk out
of the house.
And my brother actually servedin the Chicago Police Department
for 15 years and we were alwayson pins and needles, just
worried.
Like is he going to come hometonight, his wife and and his

(56:59):
children home, and themconstantly worried, like it has
an effect on your nervous systemthat puts you in a heightened
state constantly and you justfeel like you can't relax and
living in the city has really,you know, had that effect on us
in the last few years.
So, you know, we want to saythank you and let them know that

(57:22):
they are appreciated and thework that they do is important.
And you know, especially thesedays where they're viewed as
oppressors I don't know whatthey, you know they they're.
There's a perception out there,and I understand, like there
are bad apples in every group,right, but this is one group

(57:44):
that I think really deserves abig hug from the community and
we're going to have pastor CoreyBrooks come and just share a
few short words of encouragementto everyone in the room, and
he's a pastor who's really takena stand.
I feel like churches in generalI've questioned where they've

(58:06):
been in the last few years withthe way things are going and
wondered why they haven't takenmore of a stand, because our
values don't necessarily alignwith the way things are going.
You know, and I feel like a lotof them have been silent he has
not been and I reallyappreciate him for that.
I think anyone who's taking astand these days really deserves

(58:28):
a platform, because we hear somuch from the other side but I
feel like we never get to beheard side, but I feel like we
never get to be heard and Ithought it would be perfect for
him to come and address us.
I heard him speak at a Trumprally last over the summer in
McHenry County and that was anexperience because, as a

(58:48):
newcomer to this party, I justwant to experience everything,
and going to that was really fun, and so hearing him speak he
was very inspirational.
So I'm looking forward tohaving him on Wednesday night,
along with some other candidatesRepublican candidates Bob
Fioretti he is running forstate's attorney and he really
is an awesome guy.

(59:10):
He is a civil rights attorneyserved as alderman and, yeah,
he's definitely someone CookCounty wants to vote for for
state's attorney served asalderman and, yeah, he's
definitely someone Cook Countywants to vote for for state's
attorney, along with RobertSumrell, who's running for state
Senate in my district, and JohnBoris, who's former police
officer attorney, who's runningfor Congress.
So we're gonna have a fewcandidates there to just meet

(59:30):
and greet people and just leteveryone know to get out and
vote and vote red.

Jason Wagner (59:35):
Yeah, that's amazing.
That sounds like a reallytremendous event.
What is something can how do?
How can people vote right now?
How or how can they check tosee if they're registered to
vote?
I mean, just kind of walkthrough us that process.

Leslie Collazo (59:47):
Yeah, you can visit the Illinois Board of
Elections website.
You can plug in your address,you can find you know your
polling place there and you canalso check your voter
registration status.
You want to make sure that youare, you know, registered at the
correct address and all thatgood stuff.
And early voting startedyesterday, so the polls are open
.
We are encouraging everyone notto wait till November 5th, to

(01:00:11):
get out as early as possible andyou know cast your ballot.

Rachel Wagner (01:00:16):
That is a big theme this year Vote early.
We've we've never voted earlyand I'm I'm contemplating it
this year because everyone'stalking about it.

Jason Wagner (01:00:23):
Yeah, well, it's always been.
You know the uh, theRepublicans would show up day of
and um, the Democrats would.
Would send in their mail-inballots or vote early, but now
that's that messaging seems tobe a little shifting ballots, or
?

Leslie Collazo (01:00:35):
vote early, but now that's that messaging seems
to be a little shifting.
Yeah, absolutely, and you knowthere were a lot of shenanigans
is what I'll call them with, youknow, last year or the last
election around.
You know ballots, and there's alot of I don't want to call
them conspiracy theories,because I think there may be a
lot of truth to this, but we'rejust trying to make sure that
there isn't any funny businesshappening, you know, with our

(01:00:58):
votes.
So we figure, if you vote earlyin that way, then you know we
have a better chance of reallyshowing up strong, yeah, and
maybe encouraging other peopleto do the same.

Jason Wagner (01:01:09):
Yeah, yeah, awesome, you got anything else.

Rachel Wagner (01:01:12):
I'm debating.
If I want to ask, let's go, allright, yeah, go ahead.

Leslie Collazo (01:01:16):
Ask me.

Rachel Wagner (01:01:16):
I'm here, let's do it.
Well, it's a supercontroversial topic, okay, and
very present in the presidentialelection this year, and
Illinois being such a blue state.
I guess I would just ask yourpositioning on the abortion
stuff, because what I thinkwe've recognized this year,
especially with the presidentialelection, is that it's such a

(01:01:37):
heavy female vote that's such apowerful topic for females.
So just curious if you want tospeak to that a little bit.
I do?

Leslie Collazo (01:01:44):
I feel like this topic is probably the one that
creates the most division in ourcountry you know, and I'll have
to dig into my faith a littlebit around it, but as a state
representative, I representeveryone and I'm not interested

(01:02:05):
in making people feel like theydon't have options.
Even though I am a woman offaith, I believe that everyone
should have access to make thedecisions that they want to make
in their life.
I say that because I have totake it back to being vaccinated
during COVID.
I did not want to vaccinate mychildren and I felt it was an

(01:02:28):
overreach for the government toput pressure on me, making me
feel that I had to and that Ididn't have a choice.
Me feel that I had to and thatI didn't have a choice.
And that sense of not having achoice and being forced.
I apply it to this abortiontopic and I want to make sure
that women have options when itcomes to this topic.
So, as a representative, I wanteveryone to know that I want to

(01:02:53):
look at the whole spectrum.
With that being said,everything needs boundaries in
order for it to operate well, inmy opinion, and we do need
boundaries around this topic.
I don't think it's somethingthat should be a free for all,
and where I stand with it is Idon't believe abortion should be
used as a form of acontraceptive.

(01:03:15):
I'm just going to get pregnantas many times as I want and I'll
just abort the baby every time.
That's not the best option forwomen, in my opinion, because
we're not talking about thegrief that comes with an
abortion.
We'll talk about the option andthe choice that a woman has,
but we won't talk about theaftermath of that decision.

(01:03:36):
And as a person who has workedwith women in the past and as a
mentor to women and as kind of aspiritual guidance person for
women, this act of having anabortion, it does have a sense
of grief attached to it.
I also believe like this ideaaround how far into a pregnancy

(01:04:00):
is it okay to have an abortion?
Like we need to make sure thatthere are boundaries around
these things, cause I don'tthink it should go past a
certain point, but I don't thinkit's okay to completely
eliminate it, and I know thatthat's not a very popular stance
either.
It's like it's not popular oneach spectrum, but like
everything else, like because welive in this country and

(01:04:21):
because it's founded on freedom,like we need to have, we need
to make things available, but ithas to have boundaries.
I don't think it should be afree for all.
You know, some people maystrongly disagree with me and
and, and that's okay, but I feellike there are so many other
solutions, especially havingfamily members who have adopted,

(01:04:43):
you know, and not being able to, you know, have more children,
and that being an option.
There are options out there andI think being very extreme on
the right and very extreme onthe left on this topic is not
good for our country.
So that's how I feel about it,but I'd love to hear what your
thoughts are.

Rachel Wagner (01:05:03):
Well, I think I align with you a lot in that,
and I'm sad that this has becomesuch a forefront topic, because
I don't think it's the biggestissue facing us as Americans or
us as Illinoisans, but that'swhere it is.
It's become so divisive.
But I think you actually theway you described it probably
represent the majority of bothRepublicans and Democrats.

(01:05:25):
I truly believe that therearen't as many people on the
extreme spectrums as it seems.
I think most people are trulyin the middle.
I think nobody wants to limit awoman's access to that decision
up until a certain point and Ialso think nobody wants to be
allowing abortion, you know,late term.

(01:05:47):
I think most Americans actuallyagree on that topic and I would
say that I think your positionprobably reflects a lot of
current Republicans.
I get really we've had so manyconversations with people with
regards to Trump's position onabortion because there's so much
out there that says he wants toeliminate abortion and he wants
to eliminate birth control andit's like whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa

(01:06:07):
, whoa, whoa.
You know that's actually notfactual.
So I think you probably alignwith most people.

Leslie Collazo (01:06:13):
Yeah, I have to say children are a gift.
They really are a gift and Iwant to encourage everyone out
there.
If you've had an abortion,there's no shame attached to
that.
If you are contemplating anabortion, I want to encourage
you to talk to someone who canshare multiple perspectives.

(01:06:35):
But children really are a gift.
I feel like I would not be thewoman I am today if I had not
become a mother.
I think children have this wayof serving as a mirror for us in
our lives and we get to seeourselves in this little, small
form because essentially theyare us and we're raising new

(01:06:56):
little versions of ourselves,and I'm really committed to
making sure that the parts of methat need some tweaking I take
care of within me and notreplicate in my child, and they
really are a blessing.
So I would strongly encouragewomen if you find yourself in a

(01:07:19):
situation where you are pregnantand you're contemplating an
abortion, just get arounddifferent perspectives and
consider adoption as well, whichhas been a joy in our family to
have a family member enter ourfamily in that way.
Yeah, what a gift to givesomebody else, right, absolutely
, especially when they, you know, want that so badly Want a baby

(01:07:42):
, yeah.

Jason Wagner (01:07:44):
That was awesome.
Why don't we wrap so?
How we like to end a lot of ourepisodes is just kind of asking
what's the biggest takeawayfrom this conversation?
And actually, rachel, I'llpoint it to you first or I can
go here.
I'll go.
My biggest takeaway here,leslie, is just talking with you

(01:08:05):
and actually the confidencethat you bring and the calmness
too, because it seems like rightnow we're in a state where
there's not a lot of calm.
You bring kind of somethingthat's really encouraging and I
sense that I just and I and Isense that I just met you right,
I just met you, but I canalready, I can already see that
in your personality and you, youhave a confidence to say what

(01:08:26):
needs to be said in an elegantmanner.

Leslie Collazo (01:08:28):
Thank you.

Jason Wagner (01:08:29):
Right and and I noticed that about your
personality and I really respectthat a lot, and so I just want
to say that.
So that's, that's just like thebig takeaway I get.
It's like I like you, you know,it's like you're likable,
you're likable and that is.
And sometimes when you talk tothe left and people are just
like you know, I align with alot of the Republican policies,

(01:08:50):
but I don't align with Trumpbecause he's not likable.
And sometimes when you, whenyou get into these other races,
I just feel like we have thepolicies and we can pull people
over from that side, becausethere's a lot of identity crisis
that may be happening forpeople, but they need somebody
that they can like, and I feellike you have that just from
this conversation.

(01:09:10):
So that's my big takeaway here.

Rachel Wagner (01:09:12):
Yeah, I would echo that as well.
I think you are very relatable.
There were so many things thatyou shared in this conversation
that I feel like I could relateto very directly from our time
of living in Chicago and justbeing a mom and looking around
and being like we can do better,you know, I just feel like you
were so relatable and probablyvery relatable to voters and

(01:09:34):
people in your community andit's so refreshing, right, it's
so refreshing to have people onthe ballot that you can vote for
, that are just like you.
You know they're just citizensin a community wanting what's
best for their kids and fortheir neighbors, and that's what
American government should beabout, right, is we the people,
not we the power elitepoliticians who you know it's's

(01:09:55):
just, it's just so refreshing tohave this conversation.
I really enjoyed it.
And then I would also say Ithought it was so awesome to
listen to you kind of go throughyour timeline of you know how
you grew up and were a democrat.
And then you're like, why arethese things happening?
And taking it upon yourself tolook into why it was happening
and what was causing it.
And well, that I don't't likethat.

(01:10:16):
I don't actually agree withthat.
You know everything I thought Iused to agree with.
Well, this doesn't work for meand we need to do something
different.
And I think everybody can learnfrom that experience of yours
and just kind of thinking well,why is this cost so high?
Why is crime change?
What's causing these things?
What's the root cause of what'shappening?
Change what you know what?

(01:10:36):
What's causing these things?
What's the root cause of what'shappening?

Jason Wagner (01:10:38):
So I thought that was really powerful.
Yeah, leslie, what was yourbiggest takeaway?

Leslie Collazo (01:10:41):
I'm just grateful that there are more
like-minded folks out there thanI realize, and it can be really
lonely, you know, to stand onyour beliefs, and I think we
were all created for such a timeas this, where this level of

(01:11:03):
strength is needed andleadership is needed, and how
taking a stand and encouragingothers to join you in that stand
is necessary.
I think what you guys are doingis really powerful and by going
through this medium you knowyou're right up there.
I potentially see this as beingmuch bigger than even you two

(01:11:27):
realize right now.
So I encourage you keep going,keep bringing your heart and
your belief system to the public.
People need hope and they needencouragement, and I really
believe that they can receivethat from both of you and what
you're doing.
So thank you for having me.
I am honored and I feel likeI'm only here because the doors

(01:11:53):
continue to be open for me andwe'll see what we can do with
whatever tools and access thatwe have at our disposal.
So thank you too.

Jason Wagner (01:12:03):
Thank you for joining us and we wish you the
best, and we will spread yourmessage as much as we can.
And best of luck on voting day.

Leslie Collazo (01:12:11):
Thanks, guys yeah.

Jason Wagner (01:12:12):
Thanks, leslie, all right, well, thanks for
listening to this one.
If you found any value in theshow, please share it.