Firefighter union boss Bob Brooks jumps into Lehigh Valley congressional race

BETHLEHEM, Pa. — A jam-packed Democratic field seeking the Lehigh Valley's congressional seat might be close to bursting after a retired Bethlehem firefighter formally entered the midterm race Tuesday morning.

Bob Brooks, president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association, is the fifth Democrat looking to oust freshman Republican Ryan Mackenzie from Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District.

In a news release announcing his candidacy, Brooks touted his blue-collar roots. He said he knows firsthand what it's like to live with the fear of foreclosure looming and has watched as rising utility costs have stretched people's pay checks.

He accused Mackenzie, who's spent most of his career in elected politics, of selling out the district by voting to cut health care in favor of tax cuts that favor billionaires.

"It’s time to send a working-class guy from the Lehigh Valley to Congress to actually fight for working families and make life more affordable,” Brooks said in the release.

Brooks said his campaign has earned endorsements from the government employees union SEIU, Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Pennsylvania, and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont.

Deluzio previously posted his support for Brooks on social media, more than a month before Brooks entered the race.

Brooks also listed endorsements from 20 state legislators, though none from inside the district.

Joining the crowd

The Democratic field already features former federal prosecutor Ryan Crosswell, Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure, energy engineer Carol Obando-Derstine and Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley.

McClure and Pinsley are the only ones who have previously run for public office, let alone won.

Obando-Derstine has secured the endorsement of former U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, who represented the battleground district for six years before narrowly losing in 2024.

Crosswell has lived in the district for only a few months but has quickly raised more cash than his opponents.

Whoever wins the primary will take on Mackenzie in the general election. Republican leadership has funneled money to his campaign in a bid to protect his seat and their narrow House majority with it.

In his first eight months in office, Mackenzie has proven to be a reliable ally to President Donald Trump.

While he has voiced some opposition to the president's tariff policies, he's taken no action to limit Trump's tariff powers.

Mackenzie also voted to support Trump's signature One Big Beautiful Bill Act and voted to strip funding for foreign aid and public media.

In a statement Monday morning, Arnaud Armstrong, a spokesman for the Mackenzie campaign, called the Democratic field a "traffic pileup of strangers and radicals."

“While these candidates argue amongst themselves about who will most promote the same radical policies that crippled Americans financially, voters are sticking with the person who is following through on his promises and delivering for the Lehigh Valley and Carbon County. That is Congressman Ryan Mackenzie.”

Hotly contested district

PA-7 has proven to be one of the nation's most hotly contested congressional races in recent years.

Democrats hold a slight advantage in voter registration, but it's balanced out by the district's unusually high number of independent voters.

Every congressional race in the region has been decided by 3 percentage points or less since the 2020 election.

Given the district's toss-up nature, candidates and their allies have thrown millions of dollars into the congressional race every cycle.

Last year, the 7th District proved to be the 10th most expensive U.S. House race, at $38 million.

It's not yet clear how much funding Brooks will be able to raise. As a new candidate, he won't be required to file a campaign finance report with the FEC until the end of September.