Jesse Louis Jackson Jr. (born March 11, 1965) is an American former politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the U.S. representative for from 1995 until his resignation in 2012. Before entering Congress, Jackson was active in the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and the Democratic National Committee. As a member of the House of Representatives, he served on the House Appropriations Committee and worked on a broad range of legislative issues.
In 2012, Jackson took a medical leave of absence and later resigned from Congress, citing bipolar II disorder and gastrointestinal problems. Following a federal investigation into his misuse of campaign funds, he pleaded guilty in 2013 to conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison. He completed his prison sentence in 2015.
In 2024, supporters unsuccessfully sought a presidential pardon for Jackson. He sought to return to Congress in the 2026 Democratic primary for Illinois's 2nd congressional district, but was defeated by Donna Miller.
Early life, education, and early political career Jackson was raised in the Jackson Park Highlands District of the South Shore community area on the South Side of Chicago."The Elusive Jackie Jackson : Articulate and Charismatic, She Balances Keeping Her Identity and Living in His Shadow". Los Angeles Times. 18 May 1988. Retrieved 18 March 2026 He was one of five children of Jesse and Jacqueline (Brown) Jackson. He attended nursery school at the University of Chicago and attended John J. Pershing Elementary School.Jackson and Watkins, p. 28. At age five, Jackson mimicked his father in a speech atop a milk crate at the Operation PUSH headquarters. His time with his father sometimes occurred in the time between political meetings.
He and his brother Jonathan were sent to Le Mans Academy in Rolling Prairie, Indiana after Jesse Jr. was diagnosed as hyperactive. As a young cadet, he was paddled at times for disciplinary reasons. During his tenure there, he earned the rank of Company Commander.Jackson and Watkins, p. 29. Jackson repeated ninth grade and was suspended from school twice.Jackson and Watkins, p. 32. Jackson graduated from St. Albans School. He was an all-state running back on his football team in high school and was featured in the February 1984 issue of Sports Illustrated as part of their Faces in the Crowd section, which noted him for his 15 touchdowns, 889 rushing yards, and 7.2 yards per carry in six games. Jackson enrolled in North Carolina A&T University, his father's alma mater, earning his Bachelor of Science degree magna cum laude in 1987. He decided to follow his father's advice to receive a seminary education at the Chicago Theological Seminary, where he earned his master's degree a year early but opted not to become ordained. Jackson proceeded to law school at the University of Illinois and convinced his future wife to transfer there from the Georgetown University Law Center. He then earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1993. Jackson never sat for the bar exam despite finishing his coursework a semester early.
As a teenager, Jackson and his brother Jonathan assisted in their father's civil rights activities. During the 1984 Democratic primaries, the three Jackson brothers sometimes appeared at events together in support of their father's presidential campaign. While in college, Jackson held a voter registration drive that registered 3,500 voters on a campus with 4,500 students.Jackson and Watkins, p. 33. His first job after graduation was as an executive director for the Rainbow Coalition.Jackson and Watkins, p. 34.
Jackson was again involved in his father's campaigning during the 1988 Democratic primaries. In 1988, in the dealings between his father and Michael Dukakis at the 1988 Democratic National Convention, Jackson's father obtained for him a position as an at-large member of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) by a nomination from Democratic Party chairman Paul Kirk. Jackson Jr. was the last of the five children to speak and introduced his father with the words "a man who fights against the odds, who lives against the odds, our dad, Jesse Jackson." At the time, in Time magazine, Margaret Carlson depicted the younger Jackson as a well-spoken and compelling personality who would likely carry any of his father's political aspirations that his father was unable to achieve himself. His experience with the DNC gave him the opportunity to work on numerous congressional election races. After the convention he also became a vice president of Operation PUSH.Jackson and Watkins, p. 35.
Jackson was arrested on his twenty-first birthday in Washington, D.C., following his participation in demonstrations against apartheid at the South African Embassy. He had been arrested with his father and brother the year before in a similar activity. His protest against apartheid extended to weekly demonstrations in front of the South African Consulate in Chicago. Jackson shared the stage with Nelson Mandela when Mandela made his historic speech following his release from a 27-year imprisonment in Cape Town in February 1990. Before entering the House, he became secretary of the Democratic National Committee's Black Caucus, the national field director of the National Rainbow Coalition and a member of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. Jackson served as the national field director of the Rainbow Coalition from 1993 to 1995. Under Jackson's leadership, the Rainbow Coalition attempted to stimulate equitable hiring in the National Basketball Association because while 78% of the league's players were African American, 92% of the front-office executive positions, 88% of the administrative jobs, and 85% of the support positions were held by whites. While serving as the field director for the National Rainbow Coalition, he helped register millions of new voters through a newly instituted national non-partisan program. He also created a voter education program to teach citizens the importance of participating in the political process. He was a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, and also a founding board member of the Apollo Alliance.
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections Jackson's wife wanted him to run for the 2nd District Congressional seat in the 1996 primary election, while his father wanted him to run for a position as an alderman or for the Illinois General Assembly.Jackson and Watkins, p. 38. The 2nd District includes part of Chicago's southeast suburbs known as the Southland and part of the South Side. Jackson's father approached state Sen. Alice J. Palmer with a deal in which the Jacksons would support her for Congress in exchange for her support for Jackson for the Illinois Senate. Jackson Jr. did not agree with the plan and wanted to run for the 2nd District seat. After seeking approval from former Democratic National Committee chairman David Wilhelm, he decided to run for the seat against Palmer. When Mel Reynolds, who was later convicted on sexual misconduct charges, resigned from Congress on September 1, 1995, Jackson's name surfaced as a potential replacement; on September 10, 1995, Jackson officially declared his candidacy. Jackson's opponents in the Democratic primary were Palmer, Emil Jones, Monique Davis, and John Morrow in the Democratic primary, which was set for November 29, 1995. Jones was endorsed by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley. Jackson was endorsed by the Daily Southtown, Markham Mayor Evans Miller, and one local labor organization.Jackson and Watkins, p. 39. Campaign controversy arose when it was revealed that Jackson's salary as field director the Rainbow Coalition had been subsidized by the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union, which was accused by a U.S. Senate investigative committee of having ties to organized crime. Jackson was one of several Democrats who received campaign contributions from John Huang, a Democratic fundraiser who illegally funneled over $150,000 to Democratic candidates and was later convicted of conspiracy to commit campaign finance fraud. While most other recipients of the Huang-aggregated funds returned them or donated them elsewhere, Jackson kept the money, saying Huang's $1,000 contribution to his campaign was within legal limits.
Jackson won the Democratic primary with 48% of the vote to Jones's 39%, with the rest of the votes scattered among the other three candidates. The Republicans nominated Thomas Somer. Since the district was overwhelmingly Democratic, Jackson was the favorite for the December 12, 1995 special election. Jackson won the general election with 76% of the vote; his victory was widely anticipated. Upon his victory, Jackson made it known he would be a liberal voice in opposition to Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich. He took office on December 15, 1995. Jackson was perceived as less charismatic than his father and less credentialed than his predecessor, but his family pedigree was expected to help him politically. In August 1996, Somer withdrew from a rematch leaving Jackson with no major party opposition in the November 1996 general election. As a result, Jackson received 94% of the vote in the general election.
As he prepared to run for president in 2000, Vice President Al Gore attempted to maintain good relations with the Jackson family, hoping to discourage Jackson's father from running for president against him. Jackson received a congratulatory call from Gore after his election in 1995. In 1998, Gore campaigned for and advised Jackson, and went out of his way to instruct aides to create a vice presidential event in Jackson's district to boost Jackson.
The 2nd District was overwhelmingly black when Jackson was first elected and remained so after the redistricting process following the 2000 Census. Jackson won re-election in 2000 by a 90–10 margin over Robert Gordon.
In 2001, the Federal Election Commission ruled that Jackson could hire his wife on his campaign payroll as long as she was paid no more than the fair market value for her services. In 2002, Jackson was challenged in the Democratic primary by three candidates. Jackson claimed that state Sen. William Shaw and his brother, Cook County Board of Review Commissioner Robert Shaw, had planted a bogus candidate in the primary race. The claim was that they selected 68-year-old retired Robbins truck driver, Jesse L. Jackson, as an opponent in order to confuse voters and derail the congressman's re-election campaign. Jackson asked a Cook County court to question the Shaws and others under oath, but his effort was rejected and no criminal wrongdoing was found. As Jackson prepared to take further legal action, Jesse L. Jackson withdrew his candidacy after the unexpected deaths of his wife and grandson.
Jackson won re-election in the 2004 House of Representatives elections by a wide margin over Stephanie Kennedy Sailor. In 2005, Jackson supported legislation that gave the United States Federal Court of Appeals jurisdiction over the Terri Schiavo case. In the 2006 election among Jackson's opponents was Libertarian Party candidate and African-American pastor Anthony Williams, an outspoken opponent of immigration. Jackson won with 85% of the vote.2006 results
Tenure