As the presidential campaign hurtled towards the Election Day, it left Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee for president, answering questions about what he knew about his Kenyan relative, who is living in the United States illegally.

According to a report published by the Associated Press, Obama’s aunt, Zeituni Onyango, remains in the United States, even after an order for her removal was issued in 2004.

The AP reported that Onyango’s request for asylum was rejected four years ago; however, the Kenyan native - the half-sister of Obama’s Kenyan father - is living in public housing in south Boston.

On the Federal Election Commission filings, Onyango is listed as volunteer resident health advocate for the Boston Housing Authority. Federal campaign finance records indicate Onyango contributed at least $65 to Obama's campaign in the months of July and September, in $5 and $25 increments.

The Obama campaign said that Senator Obama had no knowledge of her immigration status, and that he believes “any and all appropriate laws” should be followed. Obama aides said that the aunt is part of ‘an extensive network of paternal relatives with whom Obama has had limited contact,’ as he was largely raised by his maternal grandparents in Honolulu.

Some Democrats suggested that the timing of the disclosure could have been politically motivated, and some immigration lawyers said that for government officials to disclose information about an asylum applicant was unethical or perhaps illegal.