Robin Kelly's Senate run fuels crowded primary in Chicago's 2nd District
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Chicago's storied 2nd Congressional District has some familiar Democrats vying for the open seat.
The big picture: Rep. Robin Kelly is leaving her post to run for the Senate, and her predecessor, Jesse Jackson Jr., is hoping to reclaim his seat.
- Jackson Jr. was forced from his 2nd district seat after being convicted of campaign fraud in 2013 and spent over two years in federal prison.
Zoom out: The primarily South Side district is still primarily Black voters, but it looks different from when Jackson Jr. last held the seat. Boundary lines were redrawn in 2020 to extend further into rural Illinois, all the way to Danville.
Let's meet the frontrunners:
Jesse Jackson Jr.: Last year, Jackson Jr. took on a new role, hosting a talk show for WVON. He previously held this seat from 1995 to 2012. Jackson Jr. approached Presidents Biden and Trump about a pardon, but hasn't been granted one.
- Fun fact: His brother, Jonathan Jackson, represents the nearby 1st District.
Donna Miller: The current Cook County Board commissioner (6th) has worked in the health care industry for decades and was the former board chair of Planned Parenthood of Illinois. She ran for state Senate in 2012, losing in the 15th District.
- Fun fact: Her great-grandfather was a Pullman porter.
Robert Peters: Peters has been the state senator for the 15th District since 2019, taking over for Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul. He was the chief sponsor of the SAFE-T Act, aimed at reforming cash bail in 2021.
- Fun fact: Peters was born deaf, but regained hearing after surgery.
Willie Preston: He's been a state senator for one term, representing the 16th District. He's currently the Senate Chair of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus.
- Fun fact: Before politics, Preston was a union carpenter.
Other candidates running: Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Commissioner Yumeka Brown, Adal Regis, Eric France, Patrick J. Keating, Toni C. Brown and Sidney Moore.
- The winner of the Democratic primary will go against Republican Mike Noak, who is running unopposed.