tonight, abc's jim avila on why lopez is convinced the latino vote could decide the presidential race>> first place i ever went on stage. first place i ever heard anybody say, if you worked hard you could achieve anything you wanted to do. >> reporter: george lopez is back at his los angeles elementary school where the auditorium he first performed in is named after him, a humble start for the man who would go on to lead his own abc sitcom also bearing his name. >> look, doctor, even if i did want to talk about and it my mom was driving me crazy, i'm chicano, we don't believe in therapy. >> reporter: now he's changing that father next door image. he's no longer the george hoe pez you thought you knew. his slicked-back dark hair, today pandemic white. now bringing a harder, more political edge, performing standup specials on hbo and netflix with titles like "the wall" and "we'll do it for half." >> as long as george lopez is alive, i promise you, i will never, ever let anyone disparage latinos or mexicans, as long as i'm alive. >> you strike an attitude. >> on the stage, yeah. >> what