Jesse Jackson, Jr., the son of civil rights activist Reverend Jesse Jackson, is the U.S. Representative from the Second Congressional District of Illinois.

He was born on March 11, 1965, in Greenville, SC. He earned his B.S. from North Carolina AT & T University. After accomplishing his master's at the Chicago Theological Seminary in 1990, Jackson earned his J.D. in 1993 from the University of Illinois College of Law. A Baptist, he is married to Sandra. They live in Chicago.

Before being elected to Congress in 1995, Jackson was an attorney and worked as the national field director for the Rainbow Coalition. He now serves on the Appropriations Committee and as the co-chair of the Communications Group for the House Democratic Policy Committee. He is a member of the House Committee on Organization, Study, and Review, and is also a member of the Congressional Steel Caucus and the Congressional Urban Caucus.