U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., Democrat of the State of Illinois, announced his resignation from Congress Wednesday.
Jackson formally submitted his letter of resignation Wednesday afternoon, a congressional aide reportedly told BuzzFeed’s D.C. Bureau Chief John Stanton.
The Chicago Democrat’s brother Jonathan Jackson told the Chicago Tribune earlier Wednesday that the congressman will announce he is leaving Congress in a letter to House Speaker John Boehner early Wednesday afternoon. A Boehner aide confirmed to The Hill’s Daniel Strauss that they have received Jackson’s resignation letter, a report the Associated Press confirmed.
The Sun-Times reported earlier Wednesday that Jackson’s resignation was pending. According to CNN, Jackson will announce his resignation from the House floor.
Jackson has already notified staffers, supporters and some lawmakers of his imminent resignation, CBS Chicago reports.
Jackson reportedly had planned to discuss his political future with his staffers in a conference call Wednesday, but that call was canceled abruptly upon news of the call going public Tuesday evening. The congressman is reportedly engaged in ongoing plea negotiations with the feds concerning allegations that Jackson used campaign contributions for personal use.
That reported probe is unrelated to an ongoing “pay-to-play” ethics investigation concerning whether Jackson was aware of efforts to raise money for imprisoned former Gov. Rod Blagojevich in exchange for his appointment to the Senate in 2008.
The congressman has been away from work since June as he sought treatment for bipolar disorder at the Mayo Clinic, which readmitted him last month. His whereabouts have remained unknown in recent days and the congressman had remained silent on the heels of his leaving the Minnesota clinic, for a second time, early last week.
Jackson was handily reelected to his ninth congressional term earlier this month despite only addressing his constituents through one robo-call during the campaign season.