Shows
Neal Runs For MayorBONUS: Neal Did Things DifferentlyIn the last of our election post-mortem bonuses, we hear from a data scientist, a filmmaker, and Neal's mom about the work they did on the campaign and what surprised them about the experience.2019-04-1111 minNeal Runs For MayorBONUS: Kina Collins on Political CourageKina Collins is a Chicago activist who's focused much of her work on gun violence prevention and criminal justice reform. In this bonus episode, she reflects on young voters' disenchantment with the citywide election, the tumultuous events that led up to it, and the work that continues. 2019-04-0413 minNeal Runs For MayorBONUS: Paul Vallas on endorsementsWailin sits down with former mayoral candidate and friend of Neal, Paul Vallas, to discuss his public support of Lori Lightfoot for the April 2 run-off and pull back the curtain on the endorsement process.2019-03-2809 minNeal Runs For MayorWhat's NextAs Chicago awaits the mayoral run-off on April 2, Neal isn't wasting any time in getting to work. He drops by to share his plans for what he's working on next. Plus he invites two friends—fellow candidate Paul Vallas and activist Kina Collins—to the studio to reflect on Neal's campaign and his next chapter.Show Notes
"Paul Vallas Really Loves His Broom," a Chicago Magazine profile published in the run-up to the election (0:57)
"Young Chicago Activists Have A Plan: Take Over City Hall," a WBEZ story featuring Kina Collins (0:58)
Neal's faculty page at Northwestern (2:36)
CodeNow (2:43)
Mike...2019-03-2120 minNeal Runs For MayorElection NightOn February 26, Neal hosted friends and family for a party to say thank you and to watch the election returns. There was charcuterie, laughter, a few tears, and a lot of love. Not too shabby for a candidate who was never expected to get on the ballot. The first election may be over (Chicago is headed to a run-off in April), but the work is just beginning.Show Notes
New York Times story on the election (00:39)
The Chicago Board of Elections' unofficial summary report put Neal at 1,426 votes, or 0.27% (2:45)
Neal and fellow candidate John Kozlar graduated...2019-02-2810 minNeal Runs For MayorShow Your WorkWe've arrived at the final week for Neal, the longshot candidate who was the 14th and final mayoral hopeful to make it onto the ballot for this pivotal Chicago election. Neal and campaign manager Claire Feinberg talk about the projects they're pushing forward on that aren't just integral to the campaign, but are also laying a foundation for the work he wants to carry on past the February 26 election. Show Notes
The Chicago Tonight forum on WTTW and the Fox 32 debate (0:52)
Neal's Questions app (2:29)
Neal's itemized receipt for the city budget (2:40)
Neal's video introducing the Questions...2019-02-2121 minNeal Runs For MayorA Receipt for Your TaxesNeal is getting ready to unveil another big project—a visual explainer for how the Chicago budget works and where that $22 billion ends up. He's also starting to make the rounds at mayoral candidate forums and media interviews, making public his idea to give Chicagoans a receipt for their taxes. Show Notes
Chicago reporter Sarah Karp tweeted updates from the mayoral forum at Kenwood Academy that Neal attended (00:30)
Neal’s appearance on Fox32’s Good Day Chicago (00:40)
The Center for Tax and Budget Accountability "Chicago's city budget 101" blog post (6:03)
The Chicago Tribune's investigative reporting project on the ci...2019-02-1419 minNeal Runs For MayorNeal Sáles-Griffin Has A ColdCampaign tech wizard and behind-the-scenes fixer Raghu Betina sits down to talk about an app he's building that started as an internal tool for the campaign but is being turned into a publicly available voters guide. It's one of several projects that the campaign is working to unveil in the final weeks before the election. Neal is battling a cold but stops by to give a preview of what else is to come.Show Notes
The Chicago Sun-Times' mayoral endorsement interviews (1:35)
Neal explains the tech behind the digital affidavits in "The Sky Would Have To Open...2019-02-0725 minNeal Runs For MayorSlingshotThe Chicago mayoral ballot has been set at 14 candidates, with Neal as the last name added. He now has just four weeks to get out the vote. Hear from Claire Feinberg, who's stepped up as campaign manager, about how the team is embracing constraints and working on its own timeline, rather than racing to play catch-up. Neal pops in at the end for a nerdy cameo!Show Notes
The New York Times story about the extreme cold that hit Chicago and the Midwest (0:19)
Our previous episode about Neal getting on the ballot (0:30)
Claire's mom, Wendy Littlefield...2019-01-3123 minNeal Runs For MayorThe Neal AppealWe're here at the end of all things: Neal's final hearing at the Board of Elections. And in a twist that no one on his team saw coming, he lands a spot on the ballot for Chicago mayor. Hear how it all went down that morning.Show Notes
Our previous episode, "A Motion at the Eleventh Hour" (0:35)
The Chicago Tribune's write-up of Dorothy Brown getting ruled off the ballot and Neal getting on (1:53)
The Chicago Board of Elections commissioners (2:40)
2019-01-2410 minNeal Runs For MayorA Motion at the Eleventh HourGo inside the Board of Elections hearing room on Thursday, January 17 as Neal makes his case (again) to get on the ballot. Come for the emotional roller coaster, stay for the Dragon Ball Z references!Show Notes
Our previous episode, "The Sky Would Have To Open Up" (00:30)
Chicago Tribune article "Willie Wilson ends fight to keep Dorothy Brown's name off mayoral ballot" (1:07)
Rickey Hendon last turned up in the episode "A Cesspool for Human Error" (6:00)
Campaign lawyer Ed Mullen (11:42)
Dragon Ball Z (12:30)
2019-01-2213 minNeal Runs For MayorThe Sky Would Have To Open UpToday—Thursday, January 17—is the day of Neal's final hearing at the board of elections to determine whether he'll get on the ballot. When we last left off, he was about 2,400 signatures short and waiting to hear an official ruling from a handwriting expert on how many disputed signatures would be converted to his favor. Listen to this episode to find out that result and hear about the unprecedented digital effort Neal undertook in his last-ditch effort to overcome Willie Wilson's petition challenge.2019-01-1719 minNeal Runs For MayorThe Final Sprint?Neal and his team spent long days at the board of elections, defending their 18,000 signatures from a ballot challenge mounted by candidate Willie Wilson. Now the future of Neal's candidacy depends on a ruling from a handwriting expert and whether Neal can track down—in person—a few hundred to a couple thousand Chicagoans who signed his petitions. And if that's not enough stress, Neal and Wailin get into a friendly argument about transparency and why he didn't release his tax returns to the Chicago Tribune.Show Notes
Listen to "Neal Files For Mayor," the episode wher...2019-01-0329 minNeal Runs For MayorA Cesspool for Human ErrorNeal filed over 18,000 signatures to get on the ballot, but they were challenged by mayoral candidate Willie Wilson. Now Neal and a team of volunteers have to defend each challenged signature before the board of elections, a time-consuming and difficult process. Hear from Neal and two of his volunteers, including a Chicago high school student, on what it's like to analyze handwriting and stay on the good side of records examiners.Show Notes
Our previous episode, "Neal Files For Mayor," covered what it was like to turn in the petition sheets (0:41)
Willie Wilson had talked previously...2018-12-2020 minNeal Runs For MayorNeal Files For MayorNeal has filed his signatures to be an official candidate for Chicago mayor in 2019. Now it's time to tackle petition challenges from other candidates trying to keep him off the ballot.Show Notes
To learn more about signature collection, listen to our episode about the process (1:19)
Neal's "Leaders of the Future" hoodie had this design from local brand Leaders 1354 (4:40)
Sam Letscher on Twitter (4:51)
Neal talked about Chance the Rapper and Kanye West's support for Amara Enyia in a previous episode (8:10)
A 2014 news story about Enyia withdrawing from the mayoral race (8:16)
Steve James is probably best known...2018-12-0627 minNeal Runs For MayorChance and KanyeHappy Thanksgiving! Today we have a short conversation between Neal and Wailin that didn't fit into our previous episodes. They discuss how progressive candidate Amara Enyia scored high-profile endorsements from Chance the Rapper and Kanye West, whose teams had also contacted Neal.Show Notes
"Chance the Rapper brings his star power to a long-shot campaign, backing Amara Enyia for Chicago mayor" (Chicago Tribune) (0:27)
"Kanye cash follows Chance praise, boosting Amara Enyia mayoral bid" (Chicago Sun-Times) (0:40)
"No plans to have Kanye West teach, says School of the Art Institute of Chicago" (Chicago Tribune) (5:56)
Neal's Facebook page (9:18)
2018-11-2210 minNeal Runs For MayorMidterms, Money, and ProgressNeal takes a short pause from signature collection to discuss what he noticed around voter turnout and engagement on midterm election day. He also shares a significant change in strategy around incentivizing volunteers as the process to get on the mayoral ballot reaches its critical final weeks.Show Notes
Our last episode, "Signature Moves" (0:14)
Roxane Gay's op-ed in the New York Times, "You're Disillusioned. That's Fine. Vote Anyway." (5:34)
The unofficial turnout in Chicago for the midterms was 55.6%, potentially the highest rate since 1986 (7:00)
Neal's "Donate" page (14:30)
Fundraiser scene from The Dark Knight (30:21)
Beto O’Rourke broke the qu...2018-11-0830 minNeal Runs For MayorSignature MovesEvery candidate for Chicago mayor needs 12,500 valid signatures to get onto the ballot. That’s already a huge undertaking before you even get to the potential legal challenges, ballot order lottery, and other shenanigans that are part of this process. In this episode, we dive into the messy details of what it takes to even get on the ballot in Chicago and how Neal is taking on the challenge.Show Notes
Sam Letscher on Twitter (2:12)
Bossy Chicago (2:40)
478,204 people voted in the February 2015 mayoral election (4:32)
Neal’s MAYOR merchandise (7:36)
JB Pritzker is the Democratic candidate for Illinois gove...2018-10-2522 minNeal Runs For MayorInvent the FutureThis is the story of how Neal decided to run for mayor of Chicago, with cameos from a famous computer scientist, Neal’s parents, and others who encouraged him to seek the city’s highest public office.Show Notes
CrossRoads conference (1:17)
Alan Kay's biography (1:24)
Basecamp, formerly 37signals (2:00)
Jason Fried, co-founder and CEO of Basecamp (2:08)
Basecamp invested in Starter League in 2012 (3:05)
Neal and his Starter League co-founder Mike McGee sold Starter League to Fullstack Academy in 2016 (3:09)
Michael Slaby's website (4:20)
JB Pritzker's website (4:52)
Nick Kokonas, CEO of Tock (7:53)
Morgan Malone, program manager, Englewood Quality of Life Plan (9:53)
Local acti...2018-10-1120 minNeal Runs For MayorBONUS - The Van Dyke VerdictNeal sits down with Shaun to share his reaction to the October 5 guilty verdict in the Jason Van Dyke case. The Chicago police officer was convicted of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery in the 2014 shooting of Laquan McDonald. It marked the first time in almost five decades that a city police officer was convicted of murder in an on-duty shooting. Neal talks about the impact that the McDonald case had on its decision to run for office and looks ahead to the work that still needs to be done in public safety and police accountability....2018-10-1020 minNeal Runs For MayorLaunchThe plan for Neal's campaign launch event was to give remarks for around 10 minutes and then take questions. But nerves took over and 85 long minutes later, it was clear that something had gone wrong. In this episode, we unpack what happened in the launch event and what Neal learned from the experience.Show Notes
Chicago Tribune reporter Bill Ruthhart's tweets (2:46)
Ruthhart's story about Neal's campaign, published a day before the launch event (2:53)
2018-09-2728 minNeal Runs For MayorBONUS: The Rahm BombshellOn September 4, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel unexpectedly announced he was not going to run for a third term. Not too long before that, Rahm and Neal met one-on-one for over an hour. What did they talk about, and what does Neal's campaign look like now that the race's incumbent and most well-funded candidate has dropped out? Neal stops by the studio to discuss.Show NotesRahm's announcement coincided with the start of the murder trial of Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke, who shot teenager Laquan McDonald in 2014. Follow the Chicago Tribune's updates on the trial. (4:07)2018-09-2016 minNeal Runs For MayorNobody Nobody SentWe're Shaun and Wailin, two audio producers in Chicago who were surprised and excited to learn our friend Neal Sáles-Griffin was running for mayor of Chicago. We had lots of questions about what it takes to run a campaign at this level as a political outsider, so we started a podcast to follow along with his journey. In our first episode, we talk to Neal about the importance of the beginner's mindset, the tools he's building for his campaign that he plans to make available for other first-time candidates, and how documenting his process is part of a b...2018-09-1321 minNeal Runs For MayorNeal Runs For Mayor - TeaserComing soon: A new podcast that follows the mayoral campaign of lifelong Chicagoan Neal Sáles-Griffin. You'll hear from his friends and family—as well as Neal himself—through the ups and downs of running for office as a first-time candidate. Subscribe now so you'll get the episode as soon as we launch!2018-07-2403 min