U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush of Illinois almost annihilated the career of a young Barack Obama almost 20 years ago when he easily beat back a primary challenge from the then-unknown state lawmaker by portraying him as less than authentically black, among other things.

Roland Burris has avoided controversy in his decades-long public career in Illinois, but he is a seasoned political player with deep ties to the Cook County (IL) Democratic Party.

An Indian businessman with ties to both Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich and Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr. is caught up in the probe of the governor’s alleged efforts to sell the Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama.

In a city of political dynasties, Jesse Jackson Jr. has a last name with particular political resonance.

Barack Obama’s close ties to players in the murky world of Illinois politics led indirectly to the undoing of Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich.

Patrick J. Fitzgerald, the prosecutor in the federal case against Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich, is no stranger to high-visibility prosecutions.

A behind-the-scenes scramble has already begun to fill the Senate seats that will be left vacant by Barack Obama and Joe Biden when they are installed as president and vice-president.