Over six months out from the midterm election, candidates for Congress in the Lehigh Valley have already raised and spent millions in a bid for one of the most competitive seats in the House of Representatives.
Four Democrats are vying in their party’s May 19 primary to challenge Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-7th District, in the November general election: Pennsylvania Fire Fighters Association President Bob Brooks; former PPL engineer Carol Obando-Derstine; former federal prosecutor Ryan Crosswell; and former Northampton County Executive Lamont G. McClure.
The district includes all of Lehigh, Northampton and Carbon counties, and a portion of western Monroe County. The margin of victory in the last two elections has been less than two percentage points.
Mackenzie has thus far outraised his potential opponents; Crosswell leading fundraising among the Democratic field.
However, Brooks, who boasts endorsements from prominent political figures like Gov. Josh Shapiro and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, has received nearly $500,000 in support from left-leaning groups not directly affiliated with his campaign, giving him a boost among his opponents.
Here is where the candidates’ money is coming from, and how they have spent it so far this year.
Ryan Mackenzie
U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie speaks Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, at a Uline warehouse in Lower Macungie Township before an address by Vice President JD Vance on the economy. (Monica Cabrera/The Morning Call)
Mackenzie outraised his Democratic opponents in the first quarter of 2026, posting around $907,000 in contributions, which leaves his campaign with $2.45 million in cash on hand.
His haul includes around $286,000 in contributions from individuals, $260,000 in political action committee donations, and just under $350,000 in joint fundraising efforts alongside other GOP candidates.
Prominent individual donors to Mackenzie’s campaign include cryptocurrency businessman Andrew Keys, who gave $7,000; local District Judge Donna Butler, who gave $1,000; U.S. Ambassador to Greece George Tsunis, who gave $3,500; and economist Sanford Grossman, who gave $7,000.
His campaign also received support from Republican elected officials; a series of political action committees from New York Rep. Mike Lawyer, Majority Whip and Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, Michigan Rep. Lisa McClain and other GOP representatives gave a combined $109,000 to Mackenzie’s campaign.
His campaign also received donations from prominent billionaires via his joint fundraising efforts with other candidates. Mackenzie received $3,500 from Shyam Sankar, chief technology officer of Palantir; and $7,000 each from Texas oil and gas billionaire investor Michael S. Smith and David MacNeil, billionaire CEO of car mat company WeatherTech, who has been appointed by President Donald Trump to the Federal Trade Commission.
His campaign also took in donations from corporate PACs representing companies Delta Airlines, which gave $1,000; CVS Health, which gave $6,000; Capital Blue Cross, which gave $3,000; and Walmart PAC, which gave $3,500. The National Rifle Association PAC also gave $2,500 to Mackenzie’s campaign.
Mackenzie is unopposed in the Republican primary election. His campaign has spent $282,000 so far in 2026, including $70,000 in direct mail fundraising efforts, $60,000 in fundraising commissions, $9,500 in travel expenses and $5,740 in food and beverage for campaign fundraisers.
Ryan Crosswell
Ryan Crosswell, a former federal prosecutor who quit the Department of Justice in protest, speaks at a campaign event for his run for Congress, Dec. 4, 2025, in Allentown. (Marc Levy/AP)
Crosswell out-raised his three Democratic opponents and posted the highest amount of individual donations among all the candidates.
His campaign brought in $483,818 in the first quarter of 2026, and had $715,000 in the bank as of the end of March.
Nearly all of that fundraising haul — $477,600 — came from individual contributions.
Notable Crosswell contributors include Terry Hart, Lehigh University professor and former NASA astronaut, who gave $700; Maria Rodale, former CEO of American wellness-focused publisher Rodale Inc. and co-chair of the Kutztown-based farm Rodale Institute, who gave $3,500; Jeffrey Park, former president of the Bethlehem nonprofit ArtsQuest, who gave $2,000; and Allentown developer Nat Hyman, who gave $1,000.
He took in $5,100 in political action committee contributions, including $5,000 from the American Association for Justice and $100 from Friends of Dan Hartzell, Lehigh County Commissioner.
Crosswell’s campaign has spent $380,000 so far this year. Major expenses include $178,000 on fundraising consulting across several firms, $44,000 in salary to four campaign employees and $44,000 for political polling from firm Impact Research.
Bob Brooks
This undated photo provided by Bob Brooks for Congress in August 2025 shows Bob Brooks, president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association. (Bob Brooks for Congress via AP)
Brooks, who leads the Democratic candidates in prominent political endorsements, posted $423,000 from January through March, leaving his campaign with over a half million dollars — $543,983 — to sustain it through the primary election.
His fundraising haul includes $344,000 in donations from individuals and just under $80,000 in PAC contributions.
Notable Brooks donors include James Murdoch, son of media mogul Robert Murdoch and co-founder of nonprofit Quadrivium Foundation, who gave $7,000; Michael Novogratz, billionaire investor and CEO of Galaxy Digital, a financial services company that operates data centers for AI and cryptocurrency mining, who gave $6,200; Jon Corzine, a former U.S. senator and New Jersey governor, who gave $2,500; and Jeremy Warmkessel, president of the Allentown firefighters union, who gave $1,100.
Brooks also received significant support from Democratic elected officials. PACs for officials including Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego, and Pennsylvania Reps. Madeleine Dean and Chris Deluzio gave a combined $25,500 to his campaign.
His campaign has spent $233,000 this year, including $69,000 on digital ads, $58,000 in salaries for four campaign staff and $14,000 in political opposition research from firm Arc Initiatives.
Brooks’ campaign has also received significant support via spending from outside groups that are not directly affiliated with his candidacy. Several super PACs, which are legally barred from coordinating directly with Brooks’ campaign, have spent over $500,000 on his behalf to support his run, according to FEC records.
Left-leaning groups Working Families PAC, Stronger Together PAC and Blue Majority PAC spent a combined $527,000 to support Brooks, including via digital ads, mailers and texts. He is the only candidate thus far to have received support via outside spending from super PACs.
Carol Obando-Derstine
Former PPL engineer Carol Obando-Derstine speaks Wednesday, April 1, 2026, during a debate at Moravian University with fellow Democratic candidates for the 7th Congressional District Fire Fighters Association President Bob Brooks, former federal prosecutor Ryan Crosswell, and former Northampton County Executive Lamont G. McClure. (Monica Cabrera/The Morning Call)
Obando-Derstine’s campaign brought in $86,710 this past quarter, including $78,000 in individual donations and $4,450 from PACs.
Prominent Obando-Derstine donors include Karen Cooper, former owner of Lexus of the Lehigh Valley, who gave $3,500; Constance Fletcher Hindle, manager at Easton battery charging manufacturer Hindlepower, who gave $7,000; Reiner Beeuwkes, chair of Massachusetts pharmaceutical company Ischemix, who gave $1,000; and Greg Edwards, pastor of Allentown-based Resurrected Community Life Church, who gave $500.
She received $1,100 from California Rep. Nanette Barragan’s PAC; $2,000 from Square One Politics, a group that supports women running for office; and $2,500 from Moms Fed Up, a political group that supports mothers in politics.
Obando-Derstine has also injected some of her own money into her campaign; she donated $4,000 from her personal funds and loaned her campaign $20,000, according to finance records.
Her campaign spent $107,000 in the first quarter of 2026, including $29,000 in salary for two staffers, $8,000 in advertisements in local Spanish language outlets La Razon newspaper and Latina FM and $10,000 in digital consulting.
Her campaign has just under $128,000 on hand as of the end of last month.
Lamont G. McClure
McClure continued to lag behind his Democratic opponents in fundraising, bringing in just over $20,000 in campaign contributions during the first quarter. He received $17,666 from individual donors and $2,500 from political action committees.
Donors to McClure’s campaign include some of his former colleagues at Northampton County: Director of General Services Andrew Elliot gave $500, Community and Economic Development Director Tina Smith gave $100, and County Council member Kelly Keegan gave $250.
Northampton County Judge John Morganelli, the former district attorney, gave $500.
He received $2,000 from the International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Union PAC and $500 from Friends of Dan Engle, a Roseto Borough Council member.
McClure’s campaign has spent $22,000 in 2026, including $6,000 on text services and $3,600 in software expenses.
He has $285,000 on hand, the bulk of which comes from a $200,000 personal loan he made to his campaign last year.
Northampton County Executive Lamont G. McClure speak with William Knecht of Bangor on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, at Slate Belt Senior Community Center in Bangor, where seniors can obtain vouchers for the senior food program. Federal funding cuts have reduced the number of available vouchers. (April Gamiz/The Morning Call)
Morning Call reporter Lindsay Weber can be reached at Liweber@mcall.com.