Voters on Tuesday officially nominated candidates for three U.S. House seats that cover Northeast and Northcentral Pennsylvania, including the 8th Congressional District contest that will pit Republican U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan against Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti, a Democrat.
In the Lehigh Valley Bob Brooks, the everyman candidate backed by the Democratic Party's establishment, won his party's nomination in the crowded 7th Congressional District primary, according to unofficial results from the primary election Tuesday.
Brooks, a retired Bethlehem firefighter and president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association, declared victory shortly before 10 p.m.
Newcomer to elective competition
A Moore Township resident, Brooks had never before run for office, but boasted a slew of high-profile endorsements, including Gov. Josh Shapiro, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and former presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg.
In a released statement, Brooks cited his commitment to the Lehigh Valley and record of putting his life on the line to protect its people.
"I’ve worked hard to make it out of the fire, and today I’m honored to stand tall as the Democratic nominee to represent the hardworking men and women of the Lehigh Valley and Carbon County in Congress," he said in the statement.
"This is a victory for every person across our community who has felt left behind, is tired of a broken Washington and is ready to send more working-class voices to Congress to fight for us."
Just before midnight, unofficial results from the state website showed Brooks leading his closest contenders by an almost 2 to 1 margin.
Former federal prosecutor Ryan Crosswell and former Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure finished in a virtual tie for second place. Energy engineer Carol Obando-Derstine brought up the rear.
Republican committee already on the attack
Brooks 41.74% (25,911)
McClure 20.61% (12,793)
Crosswell 20.47% (12,710)
Obando-Derstine 17.18% (10,667)
A large crowd of supporters packed into Brooks's watch party at Artisan, a cheese cellar on West Lehigh Street.
Brooks had not yet made an appearance by 10:05 p.m., but his energized supporters broke into cheers and applause as results trickled in.
"When we vote ..." one voice shouted into the crowded room.
"We win!" the room exploded.
Brooks will advance to the November election against U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Lehigh Valley. The freshman lawmaker ran unopposed iand earned the Republican nomination with 33,192 votes.
The National Republican Congressional Committee wasted little time before taking aim at Brooks on Tuesday night.
"Congressman Ryan Mackenzie has spent his first term in office fighting to lower the cost of living, improve community safety and provide much-needed tax relief for Pennsylvania workers, families, and seniors," spokesman Reilly Richardson said in a release.
"Bernie Bro Bob Brooks is a far-left socialist and poll-constructed fraud whose entire campaign is propped up by DC Democrats. Voters know Brooks's tax-and-spend agenda would devastate the Lehigh Valley, which is why they'll reelect Ryan Mackenzie this November."
Campaigns on backgrounds, qualifications
The candidates were closely aligned on most major issues, and most of their attention on the campaign trail was spent on criticizing Mackenzie and President Donald Trump for not addressing runaway expenses.
Instead, the race often rested on the backgrounds and qualifications of the candidates. Brooks highlighted his blue-collar roots and ran as someone who's been left behind by Washington. He echoed those remarks Tuesday night in his release.
"Working people across the Lehigh Valley are struggling as Mackenzie does the bidding of Donald Trump, his D.C. party bosses, and the corporate donors that own him," he said.
"Enough. It’s time to send one of us to Congress to actually fight for our families and make life more affordable."
The district has drawn international attention as one of the most contested toss-ups in the U.S. House. The past few election cycles in the district were narrowly decided; Mackenzie won the seat by just 1 percentage point in 2024.
With the major political parties engaged in a gerrymander tit-for-tat in California, Texas, North Carolina and elsewhere, PA-7 is among just a handful of competitive House seats left in the country.
A test of party's influence?
In some ways, the primary turned into a test of the Democratic Party's ability to influence voters in the Lehigh Valley.
Gov. Josh Shapiro endorsed Brooks last year and stuck with him despite some campaign flubs and a lawsuit seeking to collect on a $162,000 debt Brooks owes his former mother-in-law.
With his own gubernatorial campaign unchallenged, Shapiro campaigned on Brooks's behalf in Emmaus on Sunday.
Shapiro isn't the only high-profile name to come out in favor of Brooks. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont; former presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg; U.S. reps. Madeleine Dean, Chris Diluzio, Mary Scanlon, all D-Pennsylvania; and Jamie Raskin, D-Maryland gave Brooks their endorsements.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which usually sits out primary battles, spent money to boost Brooks, as well.
But Democratic leaders weren't the only ones seeking to change voter behaviors.
Federal Election Commission filings show two mysterious political action committees were created late in the cycle. One, the Florida-based Lead Left PAC, spent more than $1 million in the closing days of the race.
Punch Bowl News reported that the group's website at one point included meta-data tying it to the WinRed, an official fundraising platform for the Republican Party.
The Lead Left ads attacked Brooks and Crosswell while promoting McClure, whose lack of funding had left him unable to match his opponents with TV spots and mailers.
All four Democratic candidates denounced the ads as political interference and McClure called on all the candidates to reject outside spending.
8th Congressional District
With results still incomplete, Cognetti earned the Democratic nomination with at least 58,374 votes. Rep. Rob Bresnahan, Dallas Twp., Luzerne, won the Republican nomination with at least 37,937 votes. Both were unoppposed.
In a statement, Cognetti portrayed the November contest with Bresnahan as "a choice between a reformer who will shake up a broken Washington and fight for working families, or a corrupt Congressman who is only interested in serving himself. "
“Northeastern Pennsylvanians work hard and are tired of corrupt politicians who lie to us and hurt our community," Cognetti said. "As the mayor of Scranton, I’ve taken on my own party and cleaned up City Hall, invested in our police force, built new homes, brought in new businesses, created union jobs, and led Scranton out of decades of financial distress. Rob Bresnahan has spent his time in office breaking promises and playing the stock market while voting to hurt our community with devastating health care cuts and higher prices. I rooted out corruption in Scranton, and now I’m running to root it out in Washington. We are going to flip this seat and bring the fight for reform, transparency, and accountability to Congress so that our government actually works for the people it’s supposed to serve.”
In his own statement, Bresnahan called Cognetti "a self-serving career opportunist and Democrat mouthpiece who has failed Scranton workers and families as mayor."
"Northeastern Pennsylvania has always been my North Star, and I will never stop fighting for you," Bresnahan said. "Together, we will defeat Cognetti and once again win in November."
The 8th district consists of all of Lackawanna, Wayne and Pike counties; roughly the eastern half of Luzerne County, including Wilkes-Barre, Pittston and Hazleton; and all of Monroe County, except for Polk and Eldred townships and part of Ross Township.
9th Congressional District
U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser, Jackson Twp., Luzerne County, earned the Republican nomination with at least 62,108 votes. Rachel Wallace, East Brunswick Twp., Schuylkill County earned the Democratic nomination with at least 33,907.
The district includes roughly the western half of Luzerne plus all or parts of Berks, Bradford, Columbia, Lebanon, Luzerne, Lycoming, Montour, Northumberland, Schuylkill, Sullivan, Susquehanna and Wyoming counties.
15th Congressional District
Longtime Rep. Glenn Thompson, Republican, Howard Twp., Centre County, earned the Republican nomination with at least 51,205 votes. Ray Bilger, College Twp., Centre, earned the Democratic nomination with at least 34,274 votes.
The district consists of all of parts of Armstrong, Cameron, Centre, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, Forest, Indiana, Jefferson, Lycoming, McKean, Potter, Snyder, Tioga, Union, Venango and Warren counties.
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This story includes reporting by our partners at lehighvalleynews.com.
