Congressional Catch-up: Bruce Leon

Bruce Leon is a former CEO and fifth-generation Chicagoan running for congress in Illinois’ Ninth Ward. 

Bruce Leon started a human resources outsourcing company called Tandem HR in 1997 which he sold in 2020. He ran for Chicago Public School Board in District 2a and came in second in 2024. He was elected 50th Ward Committeeman of the Cook County Democratic Party the same year. He’s a self described “moderate centrist.”

Economy

Leon said more needs to be done to support small businesses to minimise wealth disparity. He supports increasing taxes on millionaires, billionaires and the upper middle class to provide small businesses with grants and government loans as well as create subsidies from affordable housing construction. 

He said he supports deregulation for small businesses and wants the government to assist small businesses with paper work and licensing.

Immigration

Leon proposed a 90 day “ceasefire” where ICE would halt all activities across the nation. In his plan, government leaders, local leaders, unions and law enforcement would meet to discuss a plan. During this time, they would create a plan for U.S. immigration policy, which Leon said would include a plan for “dreamers,” or children brought to the United States illegally at a young age who have temporary protections. 

Leon said a system would be created where every person in the United States illegally would have 12 months to register with the government. If they have no criminal record, they would be given legal status and a 10-year track to citizenship. 

Leon said ICE should be tasked only with deporting criminals, not ordinary people. He referred to ICE’s current practices as “crazy” and “ridiculous.”

Young Voters

Democrats did very poorly among Gen-Z men in 2024. Leon attributed this to the party being disorganized and acting undemocratically by not holding a primary to nominate Kamala Harris.

He said voters were confused by the Democratic party while Trump had answers for voters. 

Leon said reaching out to young voters through social media is important, and that Gen-Z has to take responsibility and get to know the issues. He said he’s optimistic about the upcoming federal election and encouraged by the large number of Gen-Z Democrats running for office. 

Protecting Democracy

To people who are worried about Trump calling off elections, Leon says “take a deep breath.” 

He said people shouldn’t be worried about the possibility of elections being canceled and pointed to the election held during the Civil War in 1862 and 1864 as proof of American democracies wherewithal. 

There are ways in which democracy could be improved, according to Leon. He supports making voting easier by supporting mail-in voting and possibly a way to cast a ballot from your phone. He also supports streamlining the process of becoming a candidate so more people can run for office. 

He also supports placing spending caps on elections to keep money out of politics. 

Gaza, Israel and the Age Divide

Leon said Israel hasn’t committed genocide in Gaza. According to the United Nations, Israel has committed genocide in Gaza. 

Of Palestinians killed by Israel since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in 2023, Leon said there was a 1 to 1.5 ratio of militants to civilians. He said this showed Israel was fighting in the cleanest way possible, given the urban environment. 

The Gaza Health Ministry doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants, but of the 67,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza, 35,419, or 53%, were women, children or elderly, The Associated Press reported. 

Leon said there was no starvation in Gaza, and the UN found 3-months worth of food in the enclave during the ceasefire. This is a false claim made by the Israel Foreign Ministry on X Oct. 12. The claim was based on an out-of-context quote from a United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) statement referring to the 3-months worth of UNRWA aid ready to cross the border into Gaza.

There’s a man-made famine in Gaza, according to the UN. UN Secretary-General António Guterres referred to the famine as “a failure of humanity itself.” 

When asked why some of Leon’s claims were disputed by the UN, he said the UN court was acting in an antisemetic way.

Leon said young people are generally more critical of Israel than older generations because they have been misinformed to think Israel is a colonial, non-indigenous nation that is subjugating a population.

Leon said young people are influenced by professors funded by Qatar as well as his fellow congressional candidates Kat Abughazaleh and Amiwala Bushra, who he said are damaging the peace process by saying things like “globalize the intifada” and “from the river to the sea.”

Leon said Jewish federations around the world should help rebuild Gaza as a “beautiful city” in a process he compared to the rebuilding of Chicago after the Chicago Fire. He said the rebuilding would create amazing jobs for Palestinians and proposed a system which would contract with Palestinian owned companies to build entrepreneurship.

Abortion

Leon said abortion access should be a federally protected right for all Americans. He said each state could have nuances to the way it’s provided as long as abortion is available to all people. 

Leon said abortions should be done at hospitals instead of for-profit-clinics. These hospitals wouldn’t be funded by tax dollars, so people who don’t support abortion rights wouldn’t have to pay for abortions. Instead they would be funded by donations encouraged by a federal tax credit.

Climate Change

Leon said he supports a carbon tax to encourage a movement away from fracking and fossil fuels while incentivising nuclear and solar energy.

Most Important Issue

Leon said he’s passionate about rebuilding an economy that works for everyone, especially for small businesses and working families. He said he wants to combat Washington’s dysfunction while restoring trust, rewarding work and ending the politics of extremes.