Illinois' 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Illinois. Based in the south suburbs of Chicago, the district includes southern Cook county, eastern Will county, and Kankakee county, as well as the city of Chicago's far southeast side.
The district covers parts of Cook and Will counties and all of Kankakee, as of the 2011 redistricting which followed the 2010 census. All or parts of Bradley, Bourbonnais, Calumet City, Chicago, Chicago Heights, Country Club Hills, Dolton, Harvey, Hazel Crest, Homewood, Kankakee, Lansing, Markham, Matteson, Park Forest, Richton Park, Riverdale, Sauk Village, Steger and Thornton are included. The representatives for these districts were elected in the 2012 primary and general elections, and the boundaries became effective on January 3, 2013.
Illinois' 2nd Congressional District is adjacent to the 1st Congressional District to the north and west, the 11th Congressional District to the south, and Indiana's 1st Congressional District to the east. The district's northeast border follows Lake Michigan's shoreline for several miles. The district was created following the 1830 U.S. Census and came into existence in 1833, five months before Chicago was organized as a town. The 2nd Congressional District initially included Southeastern Illinois until 1853 and stretches of Northern Illinois until 1873. It has been based in Chicago since 1853, and part of the southeast side since 1903. Redistricting following the 2000 U.S. Census placed a majority of the district's population outside Chicago for the first time in 100 years, and moved the district's borders beyond Cook County for the first time since 1873.