Jesse Jackson Jr Resigns From Congress In Face Of Investigation

The 47-year-old has been on medical leave for bipolar disorder since June and said in his letter of resignation that he was stepping down "in order in order to focus on restoring my health".

However, he also acknowledged the FBI probe into claims he used campaign money to redecorate his Chicago home and buy a $40,000 Rolex for a friend. Continue reading after the cut...

"I am aware of the ongoing federal investigation into my activities and am doing my best to address the situation responsibly, cooperate with the investigators, and accept responsibility for my mistakes, for they are my mistakes and mine alone," he wrote in a letter to John Boehner, the Speaker of the House.

"None of us is immune from our share of shortcomings or human frailties and I pray that I will be remembered for what I did right."
It was reported earlier this month that Mr Jackson was making a deal with authorities that would include his resignation from Congress, a guilty plea and probably time in prison.
No deal has been formally announced and Mr Jackson has not been charged with any crime.
The Democrat has rarely been seen in public in the last six months but was still re-elected in Illinois's 2nd District with 63 per cent of the vote.
He has spent weeks at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota but did not return to Washington after his re-election. Under Illinois law a special election must be held within 115 days.
The resignation brings an end to the 17-year congressional career of the eldest son of Rev Jesse Jackson, the civil rights campaigner and lieutenant of Martin Luther King Jr.
The younger Jackson was elected in 1995 and often talked about as having the potential to become the first black president.
Instead, he became entangled in the scandal surrounding the Illinois senate seat vacated by Barack Obama after the 2008 election.
A friend of Mr Jackson's offered Rod Blagojevich, then Governor of Illinois, a campaign donation if he would use his powers to appoint the Congressman to the vacant seat.
Mr Blagojevich has since been jailed and Mr Jackson is currently under investigation by the House's ethics committee for his role in the scandal. He has denied wrongdoing but admitted he hoped to be appointed to the Senate.