Mark Rice
Mark Rice (Republican Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Illinois' 8th Congressional District. He lost in the Republican primary on March 17, 2026.
Biography
Mark Rice was born in Fort Worth, Texas. His career experience includes being a CEO and corporate board member. Rice has been affiliated with the Jewish Community Center in Chicago and was a founder of the Trevian Youth Football and Basketball organizations.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: Illinois' 8th Congressional District election, 2026
Illinois' 8th Congressional District election, 2026 (March 17 Democratic primary)
Illinois' 8th Congressional District election, 2026 (March 17 Republican primary)
General election
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
General election for U.S. House Illinois District 8
Melissa Bean and Jennifer Davis are running in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 8 on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
| Melissa Bean (D) | ||
Jennifer Davis (R) ![]() | ||
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8 on March 17, 2026.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Melissa Bean | 31.8 | 21,301 | |
| Junaid Ahmed | 26.7 | 17,841 | ||
Dan Tully ![]() | 12.7 | 8,481 | ||
Yasmeen Bankole ![]() | 9.6 | 6,407 | ||
Kevin Morrison ![]() | 8.9 | 5,973 | ||
Neil Khot ![]() | 6.7 | 4,516 | ||
| Sanjyot Dunung | 2.5 | 1,664 | ||
| Ryan Vetticad | 1.1 | 750 | ||
| Total votes: 66,933 | ||||
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Joseph Wentzel (D)
- Christ Kallas (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8
Jennifer Davis defeated Mark Rice, Kevin Ake, and Herbert Hebein in the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8 on March 17, 2026.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Jennifer Davis ![]() | 51.4 | 14,307 | |
| Mark Rice | 40.3 | 11,197 | ||
| Kevin Ake | 4.5 | 1,239 | ||
| Herbert Hebein | 3.8 | 1,067 | ||
| Total votes: 27,810 | ||||
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.
2024
See also: Illinois' 8th Congressional District election, 2024
Illinois' 8th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 19 Democratic primary)
Illinois' 8th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 19 Republican primary)
General election
General election for U.S. House Illinois District 8
Incumbent Raja Krishnamoorthi defeated Mark Rice in the general election for U.S. House Illinois District 8 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Raja Krishnamoorthi (D) | 57.1 | 172,920 | |
Mark Rice (R) ![]() | 42.9 | 130,153 | ||
| Total votes: 303,073 | ||||
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jorge Briseno (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8
Incumbent Raja Krishnamoorthi advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8 on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Raja Krishnamoorthi | 100.0 | 34,640 | |
| Total votes: 34,640 | ||||
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8
Mark Rice advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Illinois District 8 on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Mark Rice ![]() | 100.0 | 24,362 | |
| Total votes: 24,362 | ||||
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Abhijit Patel (R)
Endorsements
To view Rice's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Rice in this election.
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Mark Rice did not complete Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign website
Rice's campaign website stated the following:
In Congress, these will be my priorities
Restore and Strengthen the Middle Class
- Harmful government policies and out of control spending are putting an unsustainable burden on the Middle Class, the backbone of the country. Too many hard working Americans are having their savings destroyed by high inflation and high energy costs. The Middle Class could once depend on hard work and sensible decisions to achieve the American Dream. Now, the burden of government is becoming so heavy, working people are unable to buy groceries and save for retirement, losing the American Dream. We must reverse course and this will be a priority of mine when representing Illinoisans in Congress.
Crackdown on Government Waste and Corruption
- Members in Congress have participated in insider trading and their special interest, back-room deals have self-enriched many beyond the point of replacement. That’s why I support term limits combined with reforms. Too many use their office for personal financial gain, spreading the wealth to family and friends and giving away billions to enemies foreign and domestic. This has created a buffer of unaccountability and a culture of corruption that has led to Illinoisans being left behind.
Apply a “Liberty Litmus Test” to Legislation and Policies
- Our Constitutional Rights must be protected and we must not allow “policy” as a work-around for legislation passed by the people’s representatives. I will scrutinize every piece of legislation to make sure it does not infringe on our American liberties and rights. Similarly, I’ll fight “government by bureaucracy” where policies are treated as if they take precedence over our God-given rights and freedoms. To do anything less would be to sell out the promises in our Declaration of Independence and to shed the protections brilliantly expressed in our Constitution’s Bill of Rights.
Safety and Security at Home
- In Congress, I will prioritize the safety and security of all Americans, especially those in Illinois’ 8th District. Citizens are having to fight to keep themselves and their families safe. We have elected officials who are not enforcing laws, not securing the border, not fixing the problems, largely caused by them in the first place. They’re instead, preoccupied with silencing our voices, infringing on our rights and wondering where their next vote is coming from. Meanwhile, as the plight of homeless vets and other at-risk communities grow increasingly distant from the minds of this “ruling class.” Tent cities grow and with them, crime, disease, drugs, human trafficking and human suffering, under an unending flow of illegal immigration. Even migrants, suffering in inhumane conditions, know our current politicians have over promised and under delivered. We can and must do better, with new priorities and courageous leadership.
Peace through Strength Around the World
- Our past foreign policies have made the world a more dangerous place for America and our allies. Our weakness in Afghanistan contributed to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. It also emboldened Iran and its proxy Hamas to attack Israel. Continued weakness puts Taiwan under increased threat from China. The list goes on and all these aggressors are eyeing America as well. America is at its best when America is strong. Strength means a strong military that understands its purpose. It also means energy independence, secure borders and allies who know we have their back and they have ours, including the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel. Strength also means a strong economy with smart foreign trade that is fair to America and to American workers. In Congress, I will be a voice for these policies that literally are matters of life and death and keys to a future that is safe and free.
— Mark Rice's campaign website (February 11, 2026)
2024
Mark Rice completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Rice's responses.
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- I am a political outsider who will focus on being present in the 8th District by hosting regular Town Hall forums and be very Illinois-centric in order to restore the voices of constituents in the newly gerrymandered 8th Congressional District.
- My focus will be on reviving the middle class by tackling loudly-voiced struggles, including the tax and spend policies that continue to take money out of their pockets that they need now more than ever to provide for their families and save for retirement. Many folks we have talked with are not making more money in their paychecks since the Biden Administration took over and they have seen another tax, called government created inflation, take a big portion of their paychecks for energy costs, grocery bills and daily living expenses. While the middle class continues to erode here in Illinois, Democrats talk of even more taxes on the horizon in this state and on a federal level and citizens need an advocate for their retirement future.
- As a business owner and job creator in Cook County, I am very concerned that the exodus out of Illinois, including by Citadel, Boeing, Rabine Industries, Tyson Foods, Caterpillar, etc,. have hurt many and will hurt more in lost tax revenues. People see those corporations leave and feel compelled now to follow suit. I want Illinois to have good paying jobs, but it's very hard now to convince corporations to locate and stay in Illinois, where crime is up, there is a lot of government corruption (Democrat Speaker Madigan is facing several indictments and will be on trial in Illinois for RICO and Racketeering in Spring 2024), so taxes, less good paying jobs, and corruption have pushed many residents to the brink and want to leave the state.
So, this district NEEDS new ideas and NEW leadership to help facilitate job growth renewal and stop the hemorrhage of businesses fleeing, I will deliver Illinois-centric leadership vs partisan Chicago machine-based politics and the same old tax and spend policies that are disenfranchising constituents and businesses.
"British rule was responsible for nearly every problem in colonial society and that the 1770s crisis could only be resolved by colonial independence." This message is oh so true today, 248 years later!
Rocio Rios Cleveland, Spanish Educator, Hispanic activist and Illinois ambassador for "See You at the Library"
David Young. Kane County Board member
Eric Stare, Elgin Township Trustee
Dundee Township Supervisor Arin Thrower,
Dr. Gorden J. Kinzler M.D, and Army Reserve Colonel
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign website
Rice’s campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
In Congress, these will be my priorities Restore and Strengthen the Middle Class Crackdown on Government Waste and Corruption Apply a “Liberty Litmus Test” to Legislation and Policies Safety and Security at Home Peace through Strength Around the World |
” |
| —Mark Rice’s campaign website (2024)[3] | ||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on December 13, 2023
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Mark Rice for Congress, “Priorities,” accessed February 28, 2024

