if you wants to be techinical, blues is just a style of jazz. but away from, that, id say its close, but id have to go for jazz.
I love both, though I like the blues more. Rock wouldn't be rock without Jazz also. Blues, Jazz, Country etc... The roots of rock 'n' roll.
No, Blues is NOT Jazz. Blues musicians in the earlier half of the 20th century usually had a Jazz orchestra but Blues is not Jazz, they are both seperate genres.
I like to consider blues a folked up version of jazz. But that's just my opinion... I have a big problem when it comes to intertwining the two. Sometimes I like the idea of doing it, other times, I don't. Derek Trucks does a great job of crossing them into one genre and Sonny Landreth does a great job of doing country/blues.