Former Democratic Rep. Debbie Halvorson will run to replace former Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr. in the upcoming special election for his Illinois seat, the Chicago Tribune reported Monday morning.
Mr. Jackson, a Democrat and son of civil rights leader the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, resigned from Congress Wednesday after a long struggle with medical and legal problems.
Mrs. Halvorson served one term in the House but lost her re-election bid in 2010 to Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger. Mr. Jackson easily defeated her in this year’s Democratic primary in Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District.
Mrs. Halvorson served 12 years in the Illinois state Senate, including a stint as the chamber’s Democratic majority leader.
Under Illinois law, Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn has until Monday to schedule an election to fill Mr. Jackson’s seat. The election must be held within 115 days.
Mr. Jackson, 47, took a leave of absence from the House in June, citing exhaustion, and never returned. Later it was revealed he was receiving treatment for bipolar disorder at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.
Despite not campaigning for re-election, he defeated his Republican challenger this month by 40 percentage points in a heavily Democratic district, which includes South Chicago and some suburban areas.
Mr. Jackson acknowledged in his resignation letter he was aware of an ongoing federal investigation reportedly looking into fundraising abuses.
