Illinois Special Election Live: Full Results, Updates and Analysis

Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. is going to jail and Illinois voters are at the polls, choosing his successor.

The seat Jackson left vacant is being contested by a slew of candidates but there are two front runners: former Illinois State Representative Robin Kelly and former U.S. Representative Debbie Halvorson. By 8:30 p.m. EST, we should know who the next representative from Illinois will be. It's only a primary, but the Democratic winner would be heavily favored in the general election.

The special election is for Illinois' 2nd district, which has historically gone Democratic; it has significant percentages of African American voters.The general election will be on April 9, 2013. Even though it's a "local" election, national players have weighed in.

The significant issues are guns and ethics. Michael Bloomberg, through his PAC, is supporting Kelly and running ads against her main rival, Halvorson.

With that kind of support, Kelly may have a victory in hand by the end of the night, but early polls give the lead to Halvorson. It should be a close one. Voting booths close at 8:00 p.m. EST.