Lehigh Valley voters on Tuesday chose Bob Brooks, former Bethlehem firefighter and union leader who has touted his working class roots and promised to make life more affordable if elected, to challenge Rep. Ryan Mackenzie in the November general election.

With nearly 60% of votes counted, the AP called the Democratic primary in Brooks’ favor shortly before 10 p.m. With 41% of the vote, he had a sizeable lead over the three other Democrats in the race, former PPL engineer Carol Obando-Derstine, former federal prosecutor and Marine veteran Ryan Crosswell and former Northampton County Executive Lamont G. McClure.

Brooks greeted supporters at a packed election night event at Artisan Wine and Cheese in Bethlehem Tuesday night after the race was called in his favor.

“This win belongs to every worker who’s watched politicians from both parties make promises and let us down,” Brooks said. “It belongs to every family stretching a paycheck further than it can go. Anyone who has every chosen between paying the medical bills and paying their mortgage. Who is struggling to fill up their trucks at the gas pumps, and the people of this community are asking for something different.”

The Lehigh Valley-based 7th Congressional District is considered to be one of the most competitive districts in the country, and one of the few that will determine which party controls the House of Representatives in November.

Brooks emerged as a frontrunner among powerful Democrats in the race, drawing endorsements from Gov. Josh Shapiro, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the official campaign arm of the party. According to an April poll, Brooks was favored to win the primary, although more than a third of voters polled remained undecided.

His election night watch party was packed with over 60 supporters, many of whom wore union-related garb like SEIU and IAFF T-shirts. Among the crowd of Brooks backers was Allentown firefighters union president Jeremy Warmkessel, Bethlehem firefighters union president Lou Jimenez, SEIU state council President Matt Yarnell, Pennsylvania Congressman Chris Deluzio, D-17 — an early backer of Brooks’ campaign — and Brooks’ mother, Deb Jones.

Brooks has drawn frequently on his working class upbringing on the campaign trial — Jones raised him as a single mom who bartended to make ends meet, according to his campaign website. She spoke through tears as she celebrated her son’s victory on Tuesday.

“We need someone like him in Washington,” Jones said. “Not just because he’s my kid. Because he’s the right person.”

Brooks contrasted his economic background with that of his opponent Mackenzie, who he called a “career politician” out of touch with the Lehigh Valley’s working people.

“He has worked in Harrisburg, and he is working on Congress. He has never had a job outside politics, not a day in his life,” Brooks, who had earlier touted his own many jobs including bartender, dishwasher, and snowplow driver, said of Mackenzie.

Mackenzie’s campaign was quick to fire back, indicating just how contentious the November race is likely to be; in a news release, Mackenzie campaign spokesperson Arnaud Armstrong called Brooks a “con-man” who was hand selected by the Democratic Party to run.

“The establishment Democrat machine has done this for one reason: They know that Bob Brooks will follow orders from his political bosses, just like he did as a union boss. The people of the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos will reject this dumpster fire of a candidate,” Armstrong said.

Crosswell, who resigned in protest from his post as a federal prosecutor in February 2025 due to alleged corruption in the Justice Department, had raised the most money out of the Democratic field, posting $1.75 million in receipts since launching his campaign. But it wasn’t enough to stop the machine behind Brooks’ campaign; outside groups spent over $1.5 million to boost Brooks in the weeks leading up to the election.

Brooks, in his victory speech, thanked the outside groups who spent on his behalf including Majority Democrats, a new Democratic group founded in the wake of their 2024 losses, the Congressional Progressive Caucus and Make the Road PA.

Two of Brooks’ Democratic opponents were quick to announce their support of his campaign.

In an emotional concession speech, Crosswell said “the democratic process worked out and it doesn’t work out how you want it to,” but urged his supporters to back Brooks in the November election.

“I joined the Marine Corps because of 9/11, because 343 firefighters died on 9/11. I have so much respect for what Bob does,” Crosswell said. “Tomorrow, the fight starts. We have to take back this seat and we have to take back the house.”

Obando-Derstine and McClure lagged behind their opponents in fundraising, but both boasted some prominent local endorsements. Former Rep. Susan Wild backed Obando-Derstine, and McClure had the support of several local unions as well as Lehigh County Executive Josh Siegel and Northampton County Executive Tara Zrinski.

“No matter what happens tonight, I am so proud of what we built together,” Obando-Derstine said to a crowd of around 40 supporters at Mis Raices Restaurant in Bethlehem shortly after polls closed. “We brought people together into this process who felt unseen and unheard. We ran a campaign rooted in community, compassion and hard work — integrity, so many other things that I’m so proud of tonight.”

Obando-Derstine was the sole woman and only Latino candidate in the competitive race, and ran a campaign pledging to support working families.

McClure said he had “full confidence” in Brooks and said he ran a “good campaign.”

“Bob is absolutely going to defeat Mackenzie,” McClure said. “I have no question about it. He ran his campaign well. Some may say it was manufactured for him, but he did that.”

McClure said he felt good despite the loss.

“I ran the race I wanted to run. You lose every race you don’t run.”

Brooks’ win is only the beginning in what’s expected to be a close race. Mackenzie narrowly ousted Wild in 2024 by just a one percentage point margin, and the race is expected to be close once again this year. The district is one of around three dozen “swing” districts nationwide that will determine which party controls the House of Representatives, where Republicans currently have a narrow majority.

Mackenzie thanked supporters shortly after polls closed.

“From the very beginning, our campaign has been powered by the grassroots support of hundreds of volunteers throughout the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos,” he said in a statement. “As a ninth-generation resident of the Lehigh Valley who is currently raising a 10th, it’s an enormous privilege to be able to serve the residents of this community. With the help of our countless grassroots supporters, we’ll beat back the flood of special interest money that has targeted this seat, and continue delivering wins for the region.”

The primary attracted nationwide attention and drew millions of dollars in spending from outside groups. Spending on the race has topped $3.3 million, with Brooks pulling in the majority of supportive spending. Outside groups spent $1.5 million to boost his campaign.

In the two weeks leading up to the election, several PACs — which filed paperwork late enough that they will not disclose their donors until after the primary — poured millions into opposing both Crosswell and Brooks, and boosting Lamont McClure via mail, digital and TV ads. Some evidence ties the groups to Republican-aligned interests, but no one has come forward to take credit for the ads.

— Staff writers Jon Chiu and Avery Folmar, and freelance writer Andreas Pelekis contributed to this report.