Matching red firefighter hats filled the audience of ArtsQuest as Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District awaited their newly elected representative. Cheers echoed in the dining hall when the guest of honor stepped onto the podium to announce his win.
Representative-elect Bob Brooks gave a victory speech at his election party after a tumultuous race with incumbent Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R) for PA-7. He promises to continue the fight for the working class in Washington.
At 10:07 pm Tuesday night, exactly 20 minutes before the race was called by the Associated Press, Brooks declared his victory.
Brooks announced his campaign in August 2025 with a focus on affordability for the working class, reproductive rights and healthcare. He was endorsed by Democratic politicians including Senator Bernie Sanders, incumbent Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Pete Buttigieg, former secretary of transportation.
Brooks has no experience in politics or even a college degree, but plenty of experience as a service worker. He’s a former Bethlehem firefighter of over 20 years and was union president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association.
“You can say you stand with working people all you want, but if you’ve never lived that life, you’ve never lived a struggle first-hand,” Brooks said in his speech.
In his speech, Brooks said he has experienced living paycheck-to-paycheck, relying on food stamps and lived in public housing. He said Americans like him need more representation in the Democratic party and Congress.
Dorsey Rebillard has worked full time as an activity aide at a nursing home for eight years, and is vice president of the union in her facility. This year, she began volunteering part-time for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), a labor union that focuses on improving wages. Benefits and working conditions for service employees.
This year, the SEIU canvassed for Democratic candidates including Brooks, Shapiro and Representative Paige Cognetti in Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District.
She said Brooks will be able to stand up for union workers like herself in the House of Representatives and have more accountability than the Republicans in office.
“I think the Democrats we’re putting into office right now are gonna hold these crooks accountable.” Rebillard said.
District PA-7 consists of Lehigh, Northampton and Carbon counties and nearly 800,000 residents. The district was one of many key races Democrats needed to flip the majority in the House of Representatives.
As of 1:26 a.m. on Wednesday, Democrats won the majority of the House.
Despite the blue wave across the country, Brooks’ path to victory wasn’t smooth.
Brooks won a crowded Democratic primary in May with 42% of the votes while Mackenzie advanced in the Republican primary with no contest.
On Oct. 18, Brooks sent a cease-and-desist to Mackenzie for an advertisement that claimed Brooks illegally withheld workers compensation from employees at his lawn care business. Brooks’ campaign cited his accusation of defamation as the reason for dropping out of his Oct. 21 debate with Mackenzie.
“It’s very difficult when somebody is trying to destroy your spouse over false information,” said Bob Brooks’ wife Jennifer Brooks. “It makes you very angry and you have to try to compose yourself.”
On Oct. 27, Mackenzie for Congress responded with its own cease-and-desist letter for defamation in one of Bob Brooks’ advertisements that claimed Mackenzie didn’t support a bill for better first responder’s mental health coverage.
In his speech, Bob Brooks said Mackenzie’s campaign lied about his family, called to put him in jail and went after fallen firefighters.
He said he’s proud didn’t stoop to Mackenzie’s level and ran a clean campaign that focused on Mackenzie’s record.
Brooks closed out his speech by thanking union members, Shapiro, Representative Chris Deluzio, people who helped in his campaign and his family.
He said the first thing he wants to accomplish, when sworn into office, is making healthcare affordable.
“It’s about time we put normal people into the positions that make decisions that benefit normal people.” Brooks said.
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