James Marter

Jim Marter is the Republican nominee for Illinois's 14th Congressional District. A software consultant and business owner, he has been active in Kendall County Republican politics for about a decade, was the party's 2024 nominee against Lauren Underwood, and won the 2026 Republican primary.[1][2]

Marter graduated from Limestone Community High School and earned a B.S. in industrial management with a minor in computer science from Purdue University in 1984.[1] He received professional certification from the American Production and Inventory Control Society in 1995.[1] His career experience includes working as a software consultant, business owner and entrepreneur, and in 2024 the Chicago Sun-Times described him as a self-employed software consultant from Oswego.[1][2]

The Sun-Times reported that Marter said he has been engaged in local Republican politics for about a decade, including chairing the Kendall County Republican Party and serving as a precinct captain, and that he has served on Oswego's elected library board and was a 2024 delegate for Donald Trump.[2] Shaw Local described him as having run unsuccessfully for Congress four times and for U.S. Senate in 2016.[3] The Sun-Times reported that since 2018 he had run three unsuccessful campaigns for the Republican nomination before winning it in 2024; in the June 28, 2022 primary he finished second to Scott Gryder.[2][1]

Marter won the March 19, 2024 Republican primary with 79.0% and lost the November 2024 general election to Underwood, 55.1% to 44.9%.[1] He won the March 17, 2026 Republican primary with 74.9% of the vote over Gary Vician.[1]

Researched from the cited sources on 2026-10-21.