The Winner
If you live in Illinois's 14th U.S. House District, you will continue to be represented in Congress by Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-IL), who has been declared the winner of the 2026 congressional race, according to the Associated Press. The seat stays in Democratic hands.
The Race
The Republican nominee was James Marter, who won the March 17 GOP primary by defeating Gary Vician by nearly 50 percentage points to reach the general election ballot. Cook Political Report rated the seat Solid Democratic heading into Election Day.
The district covers portions of Bureau, DeKalb, Kane, LaSalle, Putnam, and Will counties, plus all of Kendall County, according to the Illinois General Assembly. The district has a total population of 763,833, a median household income of about $95,500, and a median age of 37.3, according to Geographies data for the district. About 34.2 percent of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher; the district is about 61.9 percent white, 23.9 percent Hispanic, 9.2 percent Black, and 5.5 percent Asian, with an unemployment rate of about 5.2 percent and about 9.2 percent of residents living below the poverty line.
What's Next
Underwood is set to take office on Jan. 3, 2027. Underwood said she has written legislation to increase transparency about data centers' electricity and water use and their effects on nearby communities, according to IPM News, which reported on Nov. 2, 2026 that she made the comments in an interview with The 21st Show last week.
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