Underwood Projected To Win Reelection In 14th District: AP

PLAINFIELD, IL — Voters took to the polls to reelect Democratic incumbent Lauren Underwood for her fourth term as the representative for Illinois's 14th Congressional District, according to the Associated Press.

At 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, with 95 percent of the vote in, Underwood had 178,878 votes, or 54.8 percent of the vote, to Republican challenger James Marter's 147,491 votes, or 45.2 percent.

Polls closed at 7 p.m. on election night in Illinois.

Underwood ran unopposed in June's primary election, when Marter came out on top over Charlie Kim and write-in candidate Krystal Dorey.

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When Underwood was first elected to represent District 14 in 2018, she made history both as the youngest Black woman to serve in Congress at age 32 and as the first woman to represent Illinois's 14th District, formed in 1873.

Before becoming a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Underwood worked as a nurse while also serving as a special assistant/senior adviser and policy coordinator for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She received her bachelor's degree in nursing from the University of Michigan and a master's in public health from Johns Hopkins University.

Since being elected to the position, Underwood has signed 18 pieces of legislation by both Democratic and Republican presidents into law.

Challenging Underwood, Marter has a background that 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. Raised in Bartonville, in Peoria County, Marter earned a bachelor's degree in industrial science from Purdue University, along with a minor in computer science.

He has also volunteered as a scout leader, has coached girls' and boys' basketball leagues and is a member of the education commission at his church.

The 14th District represents a portion of northern Illinois, covering parts of Kendall, DeKalb, LaSalle, Putnam, Will, Kane and Bureau counties.