Jim Carlin (born October 19, 1962) is a Republican attorney and former Iowa State Senator from Sergeant Bluff. He served in the Iowa House of Representatives in 2017 and in the Iowa State Senate representing District 3 from December 2017 to January 2023. During his tenure, he helped pass the fetal heartbeat bill and introduced legislation requiring active shooter training in schools. An Army veteran and attorney who specializes in malpractice and injury litigation, Carlin ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in 2022 against incumbent Chuck Grassley, receiving 26.5% in the Republican primary. Carlin founded the Iowa Liberty Network, which works to elect conservative candidates to office.
Carlin was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts and earned a B.A. in economics from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a J.D. from Marquette University Law School. He served in the U.S. Army from 1983 to 1985. After moving to northwest Iowa, he founded the Carlin Law Office specializing in malpractice and injury litigation. He was elected to the Iowa House in 2017 representing the 6th district after incumbent Ron Jorgensen retired. He then won a special election to the Iowa Senate District 3 in December 2017 with 54.5% of the vote and served through 2023. He founded the Iowa Liberty Network, a group working to elect conservative candidates.