The health records of candidates are now playing into Illinois elections.

A physician who US Senator Mark Kirk saw after his 2012 stroke has released a statement saying the incumbent Republican has made a full cognitive recovery.

The letter continues to say that while the stroke left Senator Kirk with no use of his left arm or hand and limited use of his left leg, it did not affect the side of his brain that controls cognitive and verbal functions.

A spokesperson from Kirk’s rival in the Senate race, Democrat Tammy Duckworth, says her medical records are being compiled.

Duckworth lost both of her legs while serving in Iraq