And now, from the University of Chicago Institute of Politics and CNN Audio, the Axe Files, with your host, David Axelrod.

I sat down this week with Bill Gates, but no, not Pat one, but another Bill Gates who I think you'll agree is well worth your time.

As a leader of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in Arizona, Gates are Republican and endured a furious barrage of false charges, cries of betrayal, even death threats after the board certified Joe Biden as the winner narrowly clinching for Biden the swingiest of swing states.

The Ordeal and its aftermath took a toll on Gates and his family, and led him to seek treatment for what was diagnosed as PTSD.

As we prepare for what promises to be another combustible campaign, this Bill Gates, who has shown such admirable courage in standing up for the integrity of the election system, is someone you should know. Here's our conversation.

Bill Gates, it's great to see you for those who have joined to hear a discussion about computers and philanthropy.

You probably tuned in to hear the wrong Bill Gates, but instead we're talking to Bill Gates, who played a significant role in a very difficult period in our history at some great personal sacrifice.

So your story is the one I'm interested in, and I'm so happy to have you here.

Well, thanks for having me. It's a real honor. And look forward to chatting with you today.

Well, let's chat about you, the real Bill Gates. Tell me a little bit about your background, your family. I know you moved around quite a bit before you landed in Arizona. Tell me about all of that.

Yeah, sort of similar, I think, to the stories of a lot of people who have ended up here in Arizona and Maricopa County.

As a kid, I moved around a lot. My dad was in a nuclear power. So, you know, go build the nuclear power plant and move to the to the next place.

Many, many states, Washington states Louisiana, Michigan, Colorado, but landed here for high school. And so spent four years in high school here, which was the longest I've lived anywhere.

And this was the late 80s. This was the Reagan era. And this is when I really became particularly focused on politics and the world around me.

What was your family? Was your family? Was that discussed at the dinner table? What is it that drew you? And I know you've described yourself as a kind of political geek as a kid.

And I, that speaks to me as I was one as well. But I'm wondering what it is that sort of captured your, your fancy.

Yeah, was always surrounded by in fact, my very first memory of politics was the 1976 election. And I remember my parents paying close attention to that presidential election.

So, you know, I heard a lot about this. My dad being a nuclear power. I actually as a kindergarten student, I stood up in my class. And a lot of people, we were living in the Easter Washington, the Amphor nuclear reservation.

And so I stood up and told them that they need to go home and tell all their parents to vote for president Ford because if they didn't, their parents were all going to lose their jobs.

And so that's my, yeah, my kindergarten teacher received that.

She was amazed and took me into the teachers lounge and had me repeat this to all of the teachers. So, you know, I really, you know, I've said I registered as a Republican in 18, started the Teenager Republican Club at my high school.

But actually, yeah, my Republican roots do go back to that 1976 election.

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