Larry Marker (also known as 'Lead' Marker) is a 62-year-old former oil and gas operator from Roswell, New Mexico, who now works as a building contractor. He describes himself as a 'Christian conservative' aligned with patriot movement ideologies. Marker has run for elected office multiple times without success: he lost a Republican primary for state Senate District 27 in 2024 (finishing third) and ran as an independent/Libertarian write-in candidate for State Commissioner of Public Lands in 2022 (receiving 3,950 votes, less than 1% of ballots cast). In 2026, Marker became the Republican Party's write-in candidate for U.S. Senate after the initial Republican nominee was disqualified and other prospective candidates failed to qualify. He must receive at least 2,351 write-in votes in the June 2 primary to advance to the general election.
Marker is a business owner in Roswell with roots in the oil and gas industry. He has been active in conservative litigation against state and local officials, including Governor Lujan Grisham and Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver. His record of political activism and candidacies suggests commitment to Republican causes, despite never winning an election. He appears to have shifted from libertarian-leaning positions (his 2022 independent write-in campaign) to more mainstream Republican positioning.