Will County Gazette

James Marter, the Republican candidate for U.S. Congress in Illinois' 34th District, has urged his constituents to sign or circulate a petition aimed at securing a question on the November ballot about parental rights. Marter is set to challenge incumbent Democrat Lauren Underwood in the upcoming general election.

"Let's stand with parents in this state," said James T Marter, Chairman, according to Facebook. "They will not co-parent with the government!!"

According to a post on Marter's Facebook page, he shared a message from the Parents Matter Coalition (PMC), which stated: "Petition deadline extended. Please submit your notarized signature petitions by April 15!"
Marter added: "Parents Matter Coalition has extended the deadline for collecting signatures for PARENTAL RIGHTS ballot initiative in Illinois to April 15th. Let's stand with parents in this state!! They will not co-parent with the government!! Circulate or sign the petition!!"

Screenshot of James Marter's March 22 Facebook post | Marter for Congress Facebook page

The PMC, whose mission is "helping parents and the community reclaim and restore the rights for parents and guardians to parent their minor children, free from government overreach," currently has an active ballot initiative. The initiative aims to include an advisory question on public policy regarding parental rights on the November ballot. The proposed question reads:
"Shall the written consent from a minor’s parent or guardian be required before any entity, person, clinic, or school can provide a minor (under the age of 18 years) any non-emergency medical procedure, medication, pharmaceutical, or any gender modification procedure, gender identification counseling or gender therapy?"

In terms of electoral performance, during the primary election held on March 19, Marter faced two challengers: Charlie Kim and Kristal Dorey. Two other candidates were either withdrawn or disqualified from participating in the race. According to Ballotpedia data, Marter garnered 79.1% of votes casted - translating into 24,502 votes in total - while Kim received 20.9% of votes (6,462 votes). Dorey did not receive any votes. Marter is now set to face incumbent Democrat Lauren Underwood in the November general election. Underwood was first elected to her seat in 2018.

Marter, a lifelong resident of Illinois, was born in Peoria County and has lived in Illinois’ 14th Congressional district for 24 years where he also raised his family. His biography on his campaign website reveals that since 2015, he has been active in local politics and currently serves as the chair of the Kendall County Republicans - a position he has been elected to three times. He is also a Trustee in the Oswego Library District and a deputy on the GOP State Central Committee for the 14th Congressional District. Marter boasts a 35-year career in information technology, project management, and business process implementation.