Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-IL) has easily turned back a primary challenge from former Rep. Debbie Halvorson.
With 80 percent of precincts reporting, Jackson has 71 percent of the vote, to Halvorson’s 29 percent, according to the Associated Press.
Halvorson picked up a formerly Republican-held House seat in 2008, but was then defeated for re-election in the 2010 GOP wave. She attempted to mount a comeback, based on the combination of redistricting having put some of her old territory into Jackson’s district — and on ethics allegations against Jackson.
The House Ethics Committee has been probing allegations that Jackson and his donors attempted to maneuver him into the appointment by then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich to President Obama’s former Senate seat, soon after the 2008 election. But Jackson was able to promote his work for the district he has represented since 1995, and his support of Obama on major issues.
