Jackson, Jesse, Jr., 1965-

<p>Jesse Louis Jackson Jr. (born March 11, 1965) is a former American politician who served as a Democratic Congressman representing Illinois's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1995 until his resignation in 2012. He is the son of activist and former presidential candidate Jesse Jackson and, prior to his career in elected office, worked for his father in both the elder Jackson's 1984 presidential campaign and his social justice, civil rights and political activism organization, Operation PUSH. Jackson's wife, Sandi Jackson, served on the Chicago City Council. He served as a national co-chairman of the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign. Jackson established a consistent liberal record on both social and fiscal issues, and he has co-authored books on civil rights and personal finance.</p>

<p>In October 2012, Jackson was investigated for financial improprieties including misuse of campaign funds. Jackson resigned from Congress on November 21, 2012, citing mental and physical health problems, including bipolar disorder and gastrointestinal problems. On February 8, 2013, Jackson admitted to violating federal campaign law by using campaign funds to make personal purchases. Jackson pleaded guilty on February 20, 2013, to one count of wire and mail fraud. On August 14, 2013, he was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison. Jackson was released from prison on March 26, 2015.</p>

<p>Born on March 11, 1965, Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. literally was born into the civil rights movement. Son of the passionate activist, the Reverend Jesse Jackson, Jackson was raised in an environment that strongly advocated education. Jackson attended North Carolina A&T State University, graduating magna cum laude with a degree in business management. He later attended the Chicago Theological Seminary, earning his master's degree in theology. He continued his education at the University of Illinois College of Law, earning his J.D. in 1993.</p>

<p>In 1995, he won election to the U.S. House of Representatives. Currently, Jackson sits on the House Appropriations Committee and on the subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. Jackson has been awarded honorary doctorate degrees from the Chicago Theological Seminary, North Carolina A&T State University and Governors State University. Jackson was reelected in 2000, with a ninety to ten margin, and then won again in 2004. Jackson is known for his liberal agenda and his broad appeal.</p>

Outside of his political career Jackson has coauthored numerous books including <i>It's About the Money: How You Can Get Out of Debt, Build Wealth, and Achieve Your Financial Dreams</i> and <i>Legal Lynching: The Death Penalty and America’s Future</i>. Jackson has also worked as national field director for the Rainbow Coalition.</p>

<p>The son of one of the foremost civil rights activists of the 20th century, Jesse Jackson, Jr., won his first campaign for elected office when he prevailed in a special election to represent a U.S. House district that stretched across South Chicago and outlying communities. From his seat on the House Appropriations Committee, Jackson focused on improving the economy of his largely suburban district and attended to national issues affecting the African-American community, such as voting reform and health care. “I’m in Congress not because of something I’ve done,” Jackson once said, “but because of the many African Americans who have fought for me to be there.”</p>

<p>Jesse L. Jackson, Jr., was born in Greenville, South Carolina, on March 11, 1965, the second of five children of Jesse, a civil rights activist, and Jacqueline Davis Jackson. He attended Le Mans Academy, a private military preparatory school, and graduated from St. Albans School in Washington, D.C. Jackson eschewed football scholarships from the University of Michigan, Notre Dame, and the University of Southern California, choosing to attend his father’s alma mater instead. Jackson graduated in 1987 with a bachelor of science degree in business management from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. Two years later, he earned a master’s degree in theology from the Chicago Theological Seminary. In 1993, he completed his J.D. at the University of Illinois–Chicago College of Law. After earning his law degree, Jackson served two years as national field director of the Rainbow Coalition, a political organization founded by his father. Jackson’s wife, Sandi, whom he married in 1991, served as an alderman for Chicago’s 7th Ward. The couple has two children, Jessica Donatella and Jesse L. Jackson, III.</p>

<p>In 1995, Jackson announced his intention to run for the U.S. House seat vacated by incumbent Representative Mel Reynolds of Illinois. The district, which included much of Chicago’s South Side and a swath of suburbs toward the south, was 69 percent black according to the 1990 Census. It was economically diverse, with rich and poor neighborhoods, abandoned steel mills, and tract suburban housing. Jackson won the highly contested Democratic special primary on November 29, 1995, with 48 percent of the vote, against Illinois state senators Emil Jones and Alice Palmer. In the special election on December 13, 1995, Jackson defeated his Republican opponent, former Chicago Heights police officer Thomas Somer, by a nearly three-to-one margin. Jackson was sworn in the following day, as Representative Sidney Yates—from a nearby North Side Chicago district and then the longest-serving House Member—introduced him on the floor. Jackson easily won re-election nine times.</p>

JACKSON, Jesse L., Jr., a Representative from Illinois; born in Greenville, Pickens County, S.C., March 11, 1965; B.S., North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, Greensboro, N.C., 1987; M.A., Chicago Theological Seminary, Chicago, Ill., 1989; J.D., University of Illinois College of Law, Chicago, Ill., 1993; secretary, Democratic National Committee's Black Caucus; national field director, National Rainbow Coalition, 1993-1995; member, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition; elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Fourth Congress, to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of United States Representative Mel Reynolds, reelected to the eight succeeding Congresses until his resignation on November 21, 2012 (December 12, 1995-November 21, 2012); elected to the One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, but declined his seat.