Leslye’s Priorities:
Affordability Across the Board
Increased Economic Opportunities
No one working full-time should be told they don’t deserve a safe or affordable place to live.
Leslye will fight for a Yonkers-specific approach to affordability — not countywide formulas that price working families out. She supports real tenant protections, housing that reflects local incomes, and permanent solutions to homelessness. She also wants to create paths to homeownership.
Affordability also means access to child care, transportation, mental health care, and higher education — not just rent.
Transportation is the lifeline of the residents of District 17, which is one of the poorest districts in the County. It’s how residents get to work and school, and it should be free. In Westchester, we had free buses during Covid and more recently, we had free buses during the summer. Leslye will work to expand this year-round.
Pursuing a higher education should not be a financial hardship. Westchester Community College should be an extension of public education, and it should be free so that residents can get ahead!
As Yonkers grows, residents should benefit from all the development taking place in the City.
Leslye believes new development should lead to paid job training opportunities, apprenticeships in the trades, local hiring requirements that prioritizes Yonkers residents first, and project labor agreements that guarantee worker protections, living wages, and efficient development projects that are up to labor standards, in addition to protections against wage theft.
Economic development must create long-term stability for families already living here.
Strengthen Immigration Protection Act
County Services That Work
Leslye will also stand firm against discriminatory enforcement, protect personal data, and expand access to immigration legal services — because everyone deserves safety and dignity.
Leslye will work to increase accountability and transparency by requiring reporting of all ICE requests for detention and information and document how the County handles such requests. Leslye will also work to ensure compliance across all County agencies by ensuring law enforcement agents throughout the county are clear on what they CAN do versus what they CANNOT do.
Government should not feel like a maze designed to wear people down.
Leslye will push to reduce DSS delays, improve efficiency, expand language access, and ensure seniors, families, and working residents can access the help they need without unnecessary barriers.
Services should work the first time — not after months of frustration.