Illinois may soon become the most populous U.S. state to grant a form of driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, after the nation's growing Hispanic population boosted the power of Democrats in national and state elections on November 6.

A bipartisan group of Illinois politicians announced on Tuesday they would propose such a law when the legislature convenes on November 27. 

Washington state and New Mexico are the only states that currently allow illegal immigrants to get licenses. Utah allows driving permits. As the fifth most populous state, Illinois would be the biggest state to adopt such a law. 

A California law that allows immigrants with federal work permits to receive driver's licenses will take effect January 1, 2013. 
Supporters said the law would be good for public safety, allowing Illinois immigrant motorists to get tested on their driving skills and buy insurance. 

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"When you have a quarter of a million undocumented drivers on the road, it's definitely a safety concern," said Ron Holmes, spokesman for Illinois Senate President John Cullerton, who is backing the measure along with fellow Democrats Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. 

Former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar, a popular Republican, joined Democrats at a news conference in Chicago Tuesday to support the idea, as did Republican State Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka. It also has the support of the powerful House Speaker, Chicago Democrat Michael Madigan, giving it a good chance of passage. 

The drive to pass the law follows the re-election of Democratic President Barack Obama, Democratic gains in the U.S. Senate and in the Illinois legislature with strong Hispanic support. 

Since 2010, a handful of Republican-led states, notably border state Arizona, passed laws cracking down on illegal immigrants. But after this year's election, which saw an estimated 66 percent of Hispanics vote for Obama, Democrats and Republicans have said they want to work on an overhaul of federal immigration law. 

Illinois, like California, elected a veto-proof Democratic supermajority in the legislature this month, with Democrats now controlling all branches of government. 

Unlicensed, uninsured drivers are involved in almost 80,000 accidents in Illinois each year, resulting in $660 million in damage, according to the Illinois Highway Safety Coalition. Unlicensed immigrant drivers cost $64 million in damage claims alone. 

The Safety Coalition said on its website that since New Mexico made the change in 2003, the rate of uninsured motorists fell from 33 percent to under 9 percent. 

New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez, a Republican, has fought to outlaw such licenses since she took office in January 2011. She has argued that the state's law encouraged people to come to New Mexico from other states just to obtain driver's licenses. 
Holmes said supporters of the Illinois measure are talking with law enforcement officials to make sure a license for undocumented immigrants would not be used for fraud. 

The measure would expand to undocumented immigrants Illinois' existing temporary visitor driver's license, used by legal immigrants. The licenses are "visually distinct" from ordinary licenses, with a purple background and the words "not valid for identification" on the front, explained Lawrence Benito, chief executive of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. 

"This is a practical, commonsense approach," said Benito. He said supporters have been talking with Republicans in the legislature to try to get their support. 

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the number of Latinos in Illinois was over 2 million, or nearly 16 percent of the population. 
Republicans in Illinois who have objected to the proposed law in the past could not be reached for comment.

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CHICAGO — U.S. Representative Jesse Jackson Jr., who has made no public appearances since for several months amid illness and who faces a criminal probe into alleged misuse of public funds, easily won re-election to his Chicago-area district on Tuesday.

Jackson, a Democrat who has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1995 and who was diagnosed earlier this year with bipolar disorder, won re-election to Illinois' 2nd Congressional district by a landslide, beating his two opponents, Marcus Lewis and Brian Woodworth.

As of 2 a.m. local time Wednesday (3 a.m. ET) and with 99 percent of precincts reporting, Jackson had captured 63 percent of the vote.

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"My deep and sincere thanks to the people of the 2nd Congressional District, I am humbled and moved by the support shown today," Jackson said in a written statement. "Everyday, I think about your needs and concerns. Once the doctors approve my return to work, I will continue to be the progressive fighter you have known for years. My family and I are grateful for your many heartfelt prayers and kind thoughts. I continue to feel better everyday and look forward to serving you."

Jesse Jackson Jr. under federal investigation over alleged financial improprieties

Jackson reportedly spent the night at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

Jackson disappeared from public view before the primary when he left for a treatment center in Arizona in early June. He later moved on to Mayo where he was diagnosed with bipolar depression and gastrointestinal issues.

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In October, federal prosecutors and FBI agents in Washington, D.C., launched a criminal investigation into Jackson involving alleged financial improprieties.

At the same time, a House Ethics Committee continues to look into Jackson's supposed involvement in trying to be appointed to now-President Barack Obama's seat in the U.S. Senate. Jackson has admitted he wanted to be appointed to the Senate, but has repeatedly denied allegations he sent emissaries to offer campaign cash to then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich in exchange for the seat.

The emissary that he denies sending to negotiate with Blagojevich, Raghuveer Nayak, was arrested on 17 counts of fraud in June.

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EAST PEORIA, IL -- Rick Santorum began the Monday before the Illinois primary addressing Mitt Romney's claims that he is "an economic lightweight." By the day's end, it was the former Pennsylvania senator's own words that had him on the defensive.

Making four stops in the Land of Lincoln, Santorum suggested at a rally in Moline that the nation's unemployment rate "doesn't matter to me."  The point, he later explained, was that his campaign is based on more fundamental issues than the current jobless numbers and that Republicans do not believe it is the government's role to create employment, only to create an atmosphere for job growth.

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But it took little time for his chief rival for the GOP nomination to pounce on the comments. Stumping in Peoria less than two hours later, Romney used Santorum's line to further his case that he the only candidate capable of handling the economy.

 

"One of the people who is running also for the Republican nomination today said that he doesn’t care about the unemployment rate, that does bother me. I do care about the unemployment rate," said Romney.

Santorum's remarks came on the heels of a different eyebrow-raising incident in a Louisiana prayer service on Sunday night. As Santorum sat off to the side in Baton Rouge church, pastor Dennis Terry, who introduced the Republican hopeful, delivered some fiery rhetoric about religious tolerance.  "I don’t care what the liberals say, I don’t care what the naysayers say, this nation was founded as a Christian nation," Terry said, adding, "There’s only one God.  There’s only one God.  And his name is Jesus."

When pressed by reporters on Monday about the comments, Santorum said he did not hold the pastor's views.  "I believe in freedom of religion and all religions are welcome and should be. I think I've made that pretty clear throughout my campaign."

The distractions came less than 24 hours before Illinois voters go to the polls to decide how their 54 delegates will be allocated.  The state is largely expected to favor Romney, but a strong showing from Santorum could further cement his place as the only candidate able to mount a challenge to the former Massachusetts governor's front-runner status.

With more than 15 media appearances on Monday in addition to the four campaign rallies, the Santorum campaign was hoping to leave Illinois on high note.  As Romney delivered an economic address at the University of Chicago, Santorum touted his blue collar candidacy in Dixon, the hometown of GOP hero Ronald Reagan.

"We need someone who can talk and strike blows for big things like Reagan did for freedom, for America," he said while standing in front of bronze statue of Reagan on a horse.  "Let’s just be brutally honest about it. There’s one candidate in this race who could never make this race about freedom because he simply abandoned freedom when he was governor of Massachusetts and he abandoned it when he promoted Obamacare in 2009.”

Throughout the day he called out Romney over his ties to Wall Street and a job creation record that, Santorum said, was one of the worst in the country while Romney led the Bay State.

But during his final rally outside a pizza shop in East Peoria, Santorum seemed to acknowledge the toll his off-the-cuff style has taken on him. "When you got out there and you don’t talk from a teleprompter, and you’re not, you know, reading notes that someone else gave you, occasionally you say something things, you wish you had a, you know, a do-over," he said.

"But you know what, I think it’s important that you get a sense of how real the candidate is, mistakes and all.”

NBC's Jamie Novogrod contributed to this report.

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