3 Republicans Vie For Chance To Challenge Underwood In 14th District

ILLINOIS —Three Republican candidates are set to face off in Tuesday's General Primary Election for a chance to challenge Democrat Lauren Underwood's seat in Illinois's 14th Congressional District.

The candidates are Charlie Kim, James Marter and Krystal Dorey, a write-in candidate. Below, you'll find some information about each candidate.

Charlie Kim

An alumnus of Downers Grove North, Kim holds degrees in politics and international economics from Harvard, along with executive management and administration degrees from Harvard's business school.

Per Kim's website, his experience includes work with DuPage Illinois Legal Aid Services, the Second Appellate Court and U.S. Federal Courts and American Express Insurance and Financial Services. Kim has also volunteered at the U.S. Veteran Affairs Medical Center and for Illinois Legal Aid Services, his website states.

Immigration

On the topic of immigration, Kim's campaign website states that "[o]ur government must defend our border by enforcing immigration laws and create a better plan for immigrants to assimilate into our communities. Incompetent politicians have made mistakes in budget and unwise migration policies that are stressing our infrastructure, limiting our resources, and oppressing our opportunities."

Kim's website states that he prefers support of the Secure Border Act of 2023 rather than the National Security and Border Act of 2024, which, he contends, "supports more assistance to foreign countries than the U.S.A."

Education

Per Kim's website, he supports the parental rights "to decide the wellbeing of students."

He continues, "Parents should have the right to choose for non-prejudice governmental influence and the best care of their children in public, private, or home-in schools. Our government must provide necessary resources to protect the safety of schools and support teachers and administrators with advanced learning tools of the 3 Rs (Reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic) and other resources that are requested by parents. By doing these essential acts, parents could entrust teachers with their precious children for the best possible education and preparation to be successful and happy in their lives."

Health Care

Kim's website states that "healthcare is a human right, and every American deserves quality healthcare without having to worry about the rising costs and overwhelming control of your health by the government."

He contends that the U.S. government should prioritize implementing "a better healthcare system than the current Affordable Care Act/Obamacare."

Public Safety

"We need a better answer to improve our questionable criminal justice system, which should prioritize not easily releasing criminals into our communities without better preparation to adapt into society," Kim's website contends. "We must support rehabilitation over incarceration because this problem is not only local, but national."

He supports allowing "legal possession of guns and weapons" and adds." We must enact realistic improvements for gun safety regulations to support businesses and law enforcement agencies to cooperate and protect our schools and neighborhoods, defending our Constitutional rights to bear arms and defend ourselves. We have to avoid making unreasonable laws to blame gun manufacturers and law enforcement agents in which separate ideologies divide us to fight for different goals instead of supporting the unity for safety of our community and protecting citizens."

James Marter

A self-described conservative, Marter earned a bachelor's degree in industrial science from Purdue University, along with a minor in computer science.

His background includes serving as the Kendall County Republican Chairman, Deputy on the Illinois 14th District Republican State Central Committee and an advisory board member for the Illinois Conservative Union.

Marter has also volunteered as a scout leader and a member of the education commission at his church.

Immigration

Marter's campaign website states, "We need this within our borders, at our border and beyond our borders. Bad policies have created a humanitarian crisis for immigrants, a disaster for American workers and increased threats to our national security."

He cites "risks to our health, the integrity of our elections, the safety of our neighborhoods and even terrorism," vowing that he will "work to secure the border, support law enforcement and protect American jobs and our way of life, from threats foreign and domestic."

Education

"The federal government has failed with Common Core and the Department of Education," Marter states on his campaign site," adding that the role of government in education "must be reduced."

Health Care

Regarding health care, Marter contends that the Affordable Care Act should be repealed because it "gave us less choice and dramatically higher prices."

Krystal Dorey

Krystal Dorey is running as a write-in candidate. Dorey's social media campaign page states that she was removed from the ballot after someone challenged the validity of her election petitions. She wrote, "I'm not a career politician. I'm running to help the people of the 14th District."

Issues

In a June 2023 post, Dorey wrote, "If I win, I'll try to ensure that the wall, on the southern border, is completed. No illegal aliens should get amnesty."

An ad on her campaign page states that Dorey also supports decreasing taxes and government spending.

Election Information

The General Primary Election is slated for March 19, 2024. This year's General Election will be held Nov. 5, 2024.