Chicago Ald. Sandi Jackson isn’t ruling out running for the congressional seat that her husband resigned from last month.
“Never say never,” Jackson told DNAinfo.com Chicago in an interview published Monday. “One never knows what the future may hold.”
A special Democratic primary election has been scheduled for Feb. 26, and Jackson told the website that she has been encouraged to enter the race, and that the “consideration looms large.”
And while Jackson said that most of the candidates who have already declared are “friends,” and that she wants them to “get out and campaign their hearts out and put out their best plans,” she also just happened to mention her “25 years of experience being on the Hill … blessed to live in both worlds as a congressman’s wife, staffer and alderman.”
But Jackson stopped short of jumping in.
“Family comes first, and I’ve got a lot on my plate,” she said. “My husband’s health is No. 1, and the welfare of our children is No. 1 as well. I’m a cup half-full kind of gal… I’m looking out the front window, not the rearview mirror.”
Former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-IL) gave up his seat in November, weeks after winning reelection in Illinois’ 2nd District. In his resignation letter, submitted to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), Jackson Jr. addressed both his health issues and the fact that he is the target of a federal investigation.
Jackson Jr. collapsed on June 10 in his Washington, D.C. home, then spent the summer on medical leave, being treated for bipolar disorder.
Over the summer, it emerged that Jackson Jr. was being investigated for the alleged misuse of campaign funds, a probe that began before his medical leave. Shortly after election day, reports indicated that Jackson Jr. had entered plea deal discussions with federal investigators. The Wall Street Journal reported that prosecutors were also reviewing evidence that Sandi Jackson was complicit in the alleged use of campaign money to redecorate the couple’s D.C. home.
Eric Lach
Eric Lach is a reporter for TPM. From 2010 to 2011, he was a news writer in charge of the website’s front page. He has previously written for The Daily, NewYorker.com, GlobalPost and other publications. He can be reached at ericl(at)talkingpointsmemo.com
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