Summary
Current Position: Prince William County Board of Supervisors since 2018
Affiliation: Republican
Candidate: 2022 US Representative for District 7
Former Position: Police Officer
Yesli and her family are firm believers in the passage from Luke which says “to whom much is given, much is required.” That is why she’s dedicated her life to service in three different Virginia law enforcement agencies and why she’s running to be your voice to power in Washington.
Source: Campaign page
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About
Source: Campaign page
Yesli grew up in Virginia where she was taught the invaluable lessons of hard work, faith in God, and love for the greatest country on His green earth. It was here that she met her high school sweetheart, Rene, whom she’s been married to now for fifteen years and has raised two beautiful children with.
Yesli’s decision to enter the world of law enforcement came following a family tragedy perpetrated by local gang members in a case of mistaken identity. This tragedy resulted in a friend losing his life and her brother being severely wounded. The professionalism and care with which the local law enforcement agencies dealt with the situation inspired Yesli to want to give back and help to protect other people in need.
Her career began as a street cop with the City of Alexandria’s Police Department where she faced the split second, life or death situations our men and women in blue face every day they put on the uniform. Yesli temporarily left the world of law enforcement as duty called her family to South Korea to join in her husband’s deployment as a member of the United States Army. Being so close to the daily threat of Communist North Korea gave Yesli an even greater appreciation for America’s commitment to freedom and human rights.
Upon returning, Yesli went back into law enforcement with the Manassas Park Police Department where she became a certified hostage negotiator, and later joined the Prince William County Sheriff’s Office to serve as a deputy and Crisis Intervention Team member under legendary Sheriff Glen Hill.
As her children grew older, Yesli began to take an even greater interest in the world of government and the policies put forward by those in charge of safeguarding our liberties. As a homeowner in Prince William County, she and her husband watched with concern as the services provided by local government did not match the increasingly high real estate tax bills they were required to pay. This, combined with a dangerous new political movement that sought to attack and scapegoat law enforcement, led to Yesli being called to serve in a different way – through elected office.
In December of 2018, she announced her campaign for an open seat on the Prince William County Board of Supervisors. Due to her commitment to advocating and fighting for conservative principles, Yesli won the Republican nomination with over 80% of the vote. She then won the general election in her Democrat leaning district by thirteen points in a blue wave year, not by running away from her conservative principles, but by boldly proclaiming them.
Comparatively, the GOP standard bearer had just lost by sixteen points the year before. This nearly thirty points swing in the face of strong political headwinds secured Yesli’s reputation as a proven winner and vote getter even in the most challenging of environments.
While on the Board of Supervisors, Yesli has:
- Fought and ultimately defeated gun control resolutions aimed at law abiding Virginians
- Advocated for and introduced significantly reduced property tax rates
- Fought eminent domain abuse threatening to wipe out the homes of low income residents
- Led the fight to preserve Prince William County’s life-saving 287(g) agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement
- Been a beacon for government transparency, efficiency, and fiscally responsible spending
- Fought to preserve American and Virginia history from the encroachment of big tech and data centers within the boundaries of Manassas Battlefield
Yesli never imagined a life in elected office, but when she saw her county (and now her nation) in trouble she knew she had to step up to the plate.
As your voice and representative to Washington, Yesli looks forward to fulfilling Congress’s responsibility of being a check and balance on the woefully inept Biden administration. She will be a strong advocate for the timeless American ideals of freedom, limited government, and restoration of the rule of law.
Yesli still serves as an Auxiliary Deputy in the Prince William County Sheriff’s Office and is an active member in her parents’ church. She also enjoys coaching her daughter’s soccer team, watching her son excel at the sport, and volunteering with Special Olympics and Santa Cops. The first in her immediate family to graduate from college, she has a Bachelors of Science in Criminal Justice from American Military University, for which she serves as an Ambassador, and is a graduate of the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Academy.
Web
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Politics
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Voting Record
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Issues
Source: Campaign page
You and I know our conservative values of freedom, limited government, the rule of law, and a firm reliance on our Creator are the things that will turn our blessed republic around. I’ve been a conservative fighter at the local level, and will be honored to advocate for those bedrock principles on behalf of you and your family in Washington.
Democracy & Governance
Checks and Balances on the Biden Administration
Our Constitutional system was created so that each branch placed checks and balances on the other branches of government. After seeing the results of one-party rule in Virginia, we chose a new way forward last November, and Virginians are clamoring for the same in Washington.
The Biden-Pelosi record of skyrocketing inflation, rising crime, open borders, foreign policy blunders, and the lowering of educational standards must be checked. But it’s going to require real leaders in Washington, not career politicians or those beholden to special interests, who will put their foot down and put their country first to hold the Democrats in Washington accountable.
You and I know our conservative values of freedom, limited government, the rule of law, and a firm reliance on our Creator are the things that will turn our blessed republic around. I’ve been a conservative fighter at the local level, and will be honored to advocate for those bedrock principles on behalf of you and your family in Washington.
The Constitution
With our liberties being infringed upon every day, the wisdom of our Founding Fathers has never been more needed.
The effects of cancel culture upon our nation has been chilling. Free people no longer feel free to speak their minds for fear of the repercussions from a small left-wing mob who find offense in everything. People of faith are under attack and belittled in a country founded upon religious freedom. And big tech companies like Google, Facebook, and Twitter are blatantly censoring those with conservative viewpoints. What those who seek to abridge these freedoms don’t realize is that our ability to reason together and communicate are what keeps a peaceful and civil society and a functioning democracy. These restrictions on speech will only cause further division within our country. As your next representative I will fight to defend this cherished and necessary right for all our citizens and hold accountable those who restrict it.
Our right to keep and bear arms must never be infringed. There’s a reason why the Founders put this second. A free people must have the right to defend themselves. As Prince William County Supervisor, I fought against gun control resolutions that encouraged the Virginia General Assembly to take away this right from law abiding Virginians. The evidence is clear: when you restrict the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens, crime goes up. Criminals, by definition, do not follow laws. Support for this constitutional right is something I will never waiver on.
Finally, Washington must begin to show a little humility and start returning power back to the levels of government closest to the people. Our Tenth Amendment mandates this and made it very clear that the powers of the federal government were to be limited in scope. This is because government that is closest to the people will ultimately be the most responsive, efficient, and best equipped to meet the needs of the citizens it serves.
Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness
The preamble of the Declaration of Independence states that “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”
Life
Our founding document says that life is a human right given to us by our Creator. I believe this statement and belive that every life is precious which is why I’m proudly pro-life. This is a position I’ve had since I was a child and I’ve not wavered on it. We in Virginia know first hand what it sounds like when our elected officials disregard the most innocent among us and talk about them as if they’re some sort of trash to be discarded. We must not become so callous as a society to reward these kinds of views. As your representative in Congress, I will always stand on the side of the words in our Declaration of Independence and on the side of saving innocent life.
Liberty
The federal government’s decision to acquire more power over you and your everyday life has been one of the most distressing responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of us believed that Washington had too much control over our daily lives even before the pandemic hit. These new-found powers that government has been given go against the ideals of individual liberty that is our birthright as Americans. The Founders knew that government must be limited to ensure liberty and freedom are allowed to flourish.
Every day, those in Washington seek to pass even more laws not aimed at, but infringing upon liberty. As a sovereign individual, I firmly believe that the government which seeks to govern you the least, governs best. Imperfect people, as we are, have a hard time managing our own problems. With that in mind, I find it hard to fathom that we can be so arrogant to think we can manage virtually every detail of our neighbor’s lives. Liberty isn’t just a buzzword to me. It actually means something.
Pursuit of Happiness
And with liberty, comes the pursuit of happiness. When government gets out of the way, people are able to pursue their God-given right to pursue their dreams. Government run by heavy handed, socialist regimes that my parents and millions of others have fled must never take hold here in America. Unfortunately, the likes of AOC, “The Squad” and many others in today’s Democrat Party see nothing wrong with experimenting with an ideology that has brought pain and misery to so many millions across the world. America must always remain the land of the free and remove unnecessary barriers that prevent our citizens from pursuing their happiness and their version of the American Dream.
Election Reform
In 2016, Democrats in Congress objected to the certification of electoral votes in places such as Mississippi, Alabama, and Wyoming – despite Donald Trump being declared the winner in these states by 17, 25, and 43 points respectively.
Clearly, election integrity and election security is a bipartisan issue. It wasn’t long ago that former Democrat President Jimmy Carter and Republican Secretary of State Jim Baker chaired the bipartisan Commission on Federal Election Reform This commission recommended photo ID requirements, and stated that voting by mail was likely to increase the risk of fraud.
We must do all we can to ensure that the citizenry and people in both parties have complete confidence in our electoral process.
Like former President Carter (and 80% of Americans), I support a photo ID requirement to vote to prove one is who they claim to be when they go vote. You need a photo ID to enter into Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice Building and to buy cold medicine. This small requirement is not much of a burden to participate in the process of choosing the direction of our republic.
In addition, I support the current House proposal to withhold federal funding from localities that allow non-citizens to vote and offset the influence of American citizens in our elections.
Finally, I strongly oppose bills like HR1 which would allow the likes of Nancy Pelosi and AOC to dictate the way elections in Virginia are run.
Making Healthcare More Transparent and Affordable
Just as many predicted, the so-called “Affordable Care Act” made the cost of healthcare, anything but.
This is a common refrain. Whenever the government chooses to get involved in the allocation of services, quality goes down and the cost goes up. Choice and competition are the key to expanded services, increased quality, and driving down costs.
As a result of the “Affordable Care Act”, many Virginians now only have one healthcare provider to choose from – and they’re stuck with whatever the plan is forced upon them.
To drive down the costs of healthcare we must allow families and individuals to have more healthcare options. Allowing individuals and families to purchase plans outside of their network and across state lines will allow Virginians to pick the plan best for them and at the lowest price.
Additionally, we need to eliminate IRS penalties and make health savings accounts tax free to anyone who wants one. This will provide consumers with the freedom and flexibility to fund and choose the healthcare coverage that works best for them.
Finally, I am an advocate for increased consumer transparency. A consumer should know exactly why a procedure or treatment costs the amount it does prior to scheduling. Requiring this sort of transparency will drive healthcare costs down faster than anything and is a far better alternative to one size fits all government plans and dictates.
Economy & Jobs
Limit Inflation by Limiting Government
While some of the issues related to rising inflation can be attributed to COVID-19, the fundamental lack of respect for your hard earned money and your future is at the foundation and the biggest driver of this crisis.
For decades, politicians in both parties have printed tens of trillions of dollars, dangerously devaluing our currency, to overcompensate for their craven desire to overspend your money. This severe mismanagement and dereliction of duty has pushed us to $30 trillion in debt, which continues to grow by the day.
Instead of acknowledging this problem, Washington has decided to double down by forcing through multi-trillion dollar spending bills. Now they continue to push for even more.
Prudent fiscal watchdogs predicted this time would come. Now it’s here, and it’s crushing American families.
Food and gasoline prices, construction costs, and virtually every daily household item has increased dramatically – with no end in sight.
Gas prices are one example. When the government limits domestic oil production (and the jobs that accompany it) you’re going to get higher prices. It’s Economics 101 that, unfortunately, Joe Biden and the far-leftDemocrats in Washington refuse to acknowledge.
When the government makes it more enticing for people to not work than work, you’re going to have a labor shortage and increased costs for consumers. Again, Economics 101.
To combat this problem, it’s going to take leaders in Washington willing to be the adult in the room and say ‘no’ to certain things.
Instead of trying to be a source and sustainer in every area of people’s lives, Washington needs to let the free-market be the driver of our economic engine. That’s the only way we’re going to get ourselves out of this crisis that is hurting so many of our friends and neighbors.
I meet fellow Virginians every day who are more concerned about their children and grandchildren’s futures being mortgaged than they are getting another stimulus check signed by Joe Biden. Whatever short term benefit our families have seen from these big spending bills are being completely washed away by the increased costs of goods that deficit spending and debt from Washington has caused.
A return to a constitutionally limited government that lives within its means is the answer to solve our present economic and fiscal woes as a nation.
Getting Back to the Pre-Lockdown Economy
In February 2020, the American economy had a record low unemployment rate. Inflation was low, wages were increasing, and investment and retirement income was rising. Then the lockdowns were imposed and everything changed.
While the unemployment rate has rebounded, we know that this number is misleading as so many Americans have simply chosen not to re-enter the workforce. America’s labor participation rate remains at its lowest level since the mid-1970’s, and many businesses are now struggling to find workers.
In order for Virginia to get back to and exceed our pre-pandemic level of economic growth and prosperity, we must remove burdens placed on our citizens and job creators. While trillions of dollars of new “money” printed at the US Treasury was supposed to make things better, it’s also caused a labor shortage felt across virtually all sectors of our economy. This, combined with even more regulations, the threat of mandates, and higher taxes has caused our economy to stumble in it’s recovery.
Mandates and burdensome regulations need to be lifted. The threat of tax increases on our citizens and job creators must be rejected. Many small businesses pay taxes at the individual tax rate – which the current administration and its Democrat allies want to increase. This is foolishness, and I will fight these efforts tooth and nail.
We must move beyond the thinking that someone else’s success means that somebody else pays the price. That is how they think in the socialist countries that people are fleeing by the thousands. Our economy is not a zero-sum game. A high tide lifts all boats. Simply allowing our job creators to do what they do best is the best way to restore our economy, and reach even greater heights than we saw prior to the COVID-19 lockdowns.
Health & Education
Student Centered Education
Perhaps the only positive result of COVID-19 lockdowns was the renewed focus on education, and, for many, having a better understanding of what our kids are being taught. The push by liberal politicians and administrators to force virtual learning against the CDC’s guidelines allowed parents a first hand look into their children’s curriculums – and it wasn’t pretty.
In many districts, the fundamental topics of reading, writing, math, and science have been replaced with ideologically based education that looks at everything through the divisive prism of race. Innocent children had been placed into categories like “oppressed” and “oppressors.”
In no state was the backlash to this dangerous and divisive rhetoric felt more than right here in Virginia, which was largely credited with triggering last year’s Republican sweep.
As an American of Hispanic descent, my children will not be led to believe they’re oppressed in the greatest country in the world. Nor will we allow them to be told that their white friends and classmates are their oppressors.
Divisive ideologies like this aren’t the only issues with our educational system, but they’re a consequence of a larger movement which seeks to lower educational standards and place our children behind the curve. Talks of eliminating advanced math classes and the dangerous results of state laws like HB257 are other examples of why choice and competition in education is needed more than ever.
Competition in education, like every aspect of life, breeds excellence. As your voice in Washington, I will be a fierce advocate for parental rights and allow money earmarked for education to follow our children to receive the education best suited for them – whether it be public, private, charter, vocational or home school. We must fund students, not systems. In Congress, I’ll fight on behalf of our parents and students so that education dollars follow our families.
Public Safety
Law Enforcement and Public Safety
I was serving on the street beat as an officer in the City of Alexandria when the politically motivated attacks on law enforcement across our country started heating up. I know first-hand what it’s like to be targeted by left-wing activists for answering the call to protect and serve
Being part of the Thin Blue Line family was, and still is, a significant part of my life. I know what those who put their lives on the line for us and their families go through every day.
I will always have the backs of my brothers and sisters in law enforcement.
The dangerous Defund The Police ideology subscribed to by today’s Democrat Party has caused serious crime and homicides to skyrocket faster than at any time in American history. Across the country, including in Virginia, politicians who have catered to the radical elements of this movement have caused unnecessary chaos in their communities.
Republicans, Democrats, and Independents all want to be safe in their own neighborhoods. As your representative, I will never succumb to the defunding of, or the new term “reimagining of” police and law enforcement. The results are already in, and these ideas have been proven to have dangerous and deadly consequences.
Whether it’s the cop on the street or the agent preventing fentanyl from crossing our southern border, I will always support, fund, and stand with the brave men and women of law enforcement who keep us safe.
Border Security
As the daughter of Salvadoran immigrants it’s been truly astounding to see that the President of El Salvador has been more committed to securing America’s borders than the Biden administration. Shortly after taking office, Biden suspended the safe third country security deals we had in place with countries like El Salvador in a deliberate attempt to encourage illegal entry by those without documentation.
In the 1980’s, my parents were placed on a strict path to citizenship via Ronald Reagan’s IRCA policy. In addition to having a clean record, they had to prove they would not be a tax burden, and learn English and American history. In return, American employers were supposed to only hire American workers or those that were here legally. This provision was never enforced.
Times are much different than they were thirty-five years ago. A booming economy then has given way to the lowest labor participation rate since the 1970’s with Americans of all races and backgrounds now having to compete against an ever expanding labor pool for jobs and wages.
In addition, gangs like MS-13 have been allowed to metastasize and prey on our communities. I know – my family grew up under that fear, and saw vicious attacks, even killings of loved ones at the hands of this barbaric gang. This was why I fought so hard to preserve Prince William County’s vital 287(g) agreement with the federal government. This agreement ensured that the most dangerous criminals arrested by county law enforcement would be checked for their immigration status.. With the ending of the 287(g) agreement, the county jail now no longer notifies ICE when illegal immigrants that commit violent crimes are arrested.
What is happening at the border today is a man made humanitarian crisis that must be fixed. Every day, young girls are being trafficked into the United States and sold as sex slaves – including right here in Northern Virginia. Massive amounts of fentanyl comes across from Mexico every day, feeding more misery and death to those already struggling with addiction issues.
Before we have any talks about what to do with those here today, we must make sure we turn the magnets off and secure the border or else this humanitarian crisis, on so many levels, will never truly be solved.
Competent Foreign Policy
We all watched in horror last summer as the images of Afghanis falling off airplanes turned into thirteen flag draped coffins at Dover Air Force Base.
The decisions to tell the Taliban exactly when we were going to leave, to give them billions of taxpayer dollars in military equipment, and to withdraw our troops before we evacuated American citizens and our allies will go down as some of the worst foreign policy choices in our nation’s history.
Regardless of your thoughts on the war itself, the disastrous manner in which we withdrew will forever be a stain on our country and it left the soldiers and civilians we have asked to serve the past 20 years feeling like their service has been in vain.
This is unacceptable and we must hold our elected officials accountable for this debacle so that none of our sons and daughters we put in harm’s way ever feel like the sacrifices they made, and blood spilled by them and their fellow soldiers was in vain.
The bungling of Afghanistan was a symbolic moment for many Americans in regards to the Biden administration as it got right to the heart of what we must expect and demand from our leaders – and that is competent and pragmatic decision-making.
Unfortunately, Afghanistan isn’t the only place we’re missing the mark.
As Joe Biden cozies up to the Chinese Communist Party and refuses to hold them accountable they continue their open human rights abuses, intellectual property theft, and trade violations against U.S. citizens and our government.
This administration’s never-ending desire to continue subsidizing Iran and their nuclear ambitions is another daily fight the legislative branch must have. The Iranian regime is a significant threat to both the United States and our top ally in the Middle East, Israel. They have funded terrorist groups that have killed American soliders, and chant “Death to America” in the streets. To send their radical regime another penny is unacceptable.
It is the duty of our leaders to keep us safe. It is also the duty of our government to be pragmatic and put our own interests before those of any other nation, whether it be in trade negotiations or staving off real or potential conflicts. While we have to be concerned about what’s going on around the world, our top focus should always be providing for liberty and domestic tranquility at home. The invade the world, invite the world approach over the last several decades hasn’t worked to our benefit. The foreign policy missteps we’ve seen out of Washington have shown that competent decision making and checks and balances are in greater need than ever before.
So many Virginia residents in the foreign service have seen their life’s work go for nought this past year. America’s place on the world stage must remain one of peace through pragmatic strength, and we should always put America’s interests first. Congress must hold the executive branch accountable to ensure that America has a rational, competent foreign policy and that we stand firm in our commitments to the ideals of freedom and human rights.
