Bob Brooks has worked many jobs throughout his life: newspaper deliverer, truck driver, factory worker, bartender, landscaper, firefighter and union leader.
His next job is in the hands of voters, but if he gets his way, it will be U.S. congressman, representing the Lehigh Valley and Poconos area.
Brooks used his blue-collar credentials and wide breadth of support from the Democratic Party — including the endorsement of Gov. Josh Shapiro — to cruise to victory in a crowded May primary against three other qualified opponents.
Now comes the hard part. He is up against Ryan Mackenzie, a Republican incumbent who has thus far out-fundraised Brooks in what promises to be a very tight race. The district is considered a “toss-up” by Cook Political Report, and is widely considered to be one of the handful of House elections that will determine which party takes control of the chamber in 2027.
The Morning Call recently sat down with both candidates to discuss the election, their priorities and why they think they’re the best candidate to represent the Lehigh Valley. The news organization also will be asking both candidates to submit columns on their stances on topics including affordability, immigration, technology and development, and foreign affairs. Those will publish in October.
Brooks said he hopes he can use voters’ anger at Trump and thirst for political change as fuel to bring him to victory in November.
Working-class roots
Brooks’ first job was delivering newspapers in hometown of North Adams, Massachusetts, at 10 years old: “I had a 2-mile route that I had to handle, wind, rain or snow,” he recalled.
In high school, he delivered pizzas, worked at a factory and did whatever he could do to help him and his single mom get by; they relied on food stamps and lived in public housing during periods in order to stay afloat, he has said.
During his senior year of high school, he and his mother lost their home in a fire. They relocated to Nazareth, where his grandparents were located, and started their lives over.
That experience is part of what motivated him to choose a career in firefighting after graduating high school. He began as a volunteer firefighter for Hecktown Volunteer Fire Company while continuing to work as a bartender and truck driver before being recruited to the Bethlehem Fire Department.
“I got an opportunity to become a city Bethlehem firefighter, and that’s the best thing that’s happened in my life at this point, outside of my children and my grandchildren,” Brooks said.
He was quickly thrust into union leadership at the Bethlehem department simply because the union needed a shift vice president, and he was willing to step up and serve. Having been represented by a union while working as a truck driver, he felt the benefits of having a collective bargaining agreement that provided benefits and protections for workers.
Throughout his 20 years on the force, he said he served “nearly every” position in International Association of Fire Fighters Local 735 before joining the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association in 2021, where he is now president.
It was there that Brooks wet his feet in the world of politics and legislation. He lobbied both in Harrisburg and Washington on behalf of pro-firefighter and union workers, and counts among his wins expanding the definition of post-traumatic stress injury in Pennsylvania, entitling more firefighters to workers’ compensation; extending a national program that helps the families of first responders who die of occupational cancer; and pushing for a bill in Congress that would provide mortgage assistance to first responders, helping them to afford to buy a home.
Via his lobbying work for the union, he built relationships with prominent figures like Shapiro and Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-17th District, who recruited him to run for Congress.
Brooks’ message to voters
Brooks and his supporters frequently like to remind voters that he does not look like your typical politician. He doesn’t have a college degree, speaks openly about relying on social services, and criticizes Washington politicians for being “out of touch” with working class people.
“I’ve lived in public housing, I’ve relied on food stamps when times were hard, I had to choose between paying the medical bills and paying the mortgage,” Brooks said in a recent campaign speech. “Regular people are getting tired of getting kicked in the teeth. What’s happening in Washington right now is not working for us. It’s time to send them a message.”
It’s that working-class background that prompted Brooks to center his campaign around affordability — not to mention the fact that high prices are polling as the No. 1 voter concern before the November midterms.
He has positioned himself firmly as a progressive candidate, pushing for policies that just a few years ago were to the left of the Democratic Party platform, including “Medicare for All,” for which Brooks is a staunch advocate. Those stances helped him earn the support of progressive groups including the Working Families Party and Make the Road.
Other key components of his platform include increasing taxes on the richest Americans, repealing Citizens United via a constitutional amendment, and implementing term limits and banning stock trading for members of Congress.
Brooks’ persona and approach could help win over voters who are disillusioned with the Democratic Party and largely backed Trump and other Republicans during past election cycles, Brooks supporters believe. Less than 2% of Congress comes from a working-class background, so Brooks, if elected, would join just a small fraction of legislators who understand what it means to struggle financially.
But his unpolished and everyman nature has also brought some stains to his campaign that his opponent has tried to exploit. Most recently, a Northampton County judge ruled that an ongoing lawsuit against Brooks by his former mother-in-law, claiming that he defrauded her and failed to pay a $130,000 judgment against him over a property ownership dispute, can proceed, despite his legal efforts to get the case dismissed.
Brooks, at an April debate, called the legal dispute a “joke,” and noted that his ex-wife is supporting him in the ongoing lawsuit and has endorsed his run for office.
The ongoing lawsuit is one of many attacks Mackenzie’s campaign has waged against Brooks, some of which have been reported in right-wing news outlets — including that Brooks failed to secure workers’ compensation insurance for his lawn care business, and that Brooks’ salary increased while spending on the union decreased during his tenure as PFFA president.
“Behind the glossy ads and the everyman brand, Bob Brooks has all the hallmarks of a common criminal,” said Andres Weller, Mackenzie’s campaign manager.
Brooks called the stories “all untrue,” without providing more specifics, and pointed to his criticisms of Mackenzie’s voting record.
“That’s the playbook, they can’t stand on our own voting record, as far as the Republicans and Ryan Mackenzie. So once they can’t do that, their only thing is to try and come after your character,” Brooks said.
Brooks’ case against Mackenzie
Just as much as Brooks is aiming to run on his own qualifications as a union leader with experience pushing for pro-worker legislation, he also needs to make his case against Mackenzie, the well-funded incumbent.
The easy part will be pointing to widespread disapproval of the president: Trump’s approval rating is at a record low, according to polling compiled by The Economist, with just 35% approval and 60% disapproval. Although Trump is not on the ballot, midterm elections traditionally are seen by voters as a referendum on the president’s performance, and Mackenzie has largely not strayed from Trump’s platform.
Specifically, Brooks has pointed to his opponent’s votes in favor of the “Big Beautiful Bill,” which made cuts to Medicaid and SNAP food benefits via stricter requirements and are expected to cause 5 million to 10 million people to lose access to health insurance; and Mackenzie’s unwillingness to support any efforts to rein in the war in Iran, which has contributed to the skyrocketing costs of gasoline, diesel and fertilizer.
“I can point to, hey, what are the gas prices right now? [Mackenzie] voted for it. Hey, how is that person losing her healthcare? [Mackenzie] voted for it. So I have legitimate stuff — they have completely made-up things,” Brooks said in response to Mackenzie’s attacks on his background. “We’ve addressed multiple times within the media, outside the media. You know, I’m not afraid of them, because they are all untrue, and they’ll be proven. But this is all he has.”
Democrats want to capitalize on anger at Republicans, but it will be no easy feat for a party that remains historically unpopular with voters.
Brooks is also at a significant fundraising disadvantage: Mackenzie had nearly $3 million in cash on hand as of the end of June, compared with Brooks, who had just over $1 million. Even though Brooks outraised Mackenzie in the latest quarterly fundraising report, bringing in around $1.3 million from March through June, he also spent nearly half a million in that same time period during his competitive four-way primary.
Mackenzie was unopposed in his own party’s primary, so was able to hang onto much of his war chest in preparation for the general election.
To help with fundraising, Brooks is part of a new group called the Blue Collar Brigade, a coalition of five Democratic candidates in swing districts, all who come from blue-collar backgrounds. According to a report by Politico, the candidates lack some of the wealthy connections that their more traditional political counterparts have, and are looking to boost their chances in what is expected to be the most expensive midterm election in U.S. history.
The other four candidates in the coalition are Randy Villegas in California, Brian Poindexter in Ohio, Sam Forstag in Montana and Kaela Berg in Minnesota.
Despite what is expected to be a historically competitive — and ugly — November general election, friends of Brooks say his working-class roots are genuine, and his message should appeal to everyday voters tired of the status quo.
“Congress has enough millionaires,” said Dennis Hower, vice president of the Lehigh Valley Labor Council, at a Brooks event this month. “They have enough corporate lawyers, they have enough professional politicians. What Congress needs are people who have actually punched a clock. People who understand what overtime means, what a pension means, what a union contract means. Understand when healthcare doesn’t pay the entire bill — that’s who we need to work for us in Washington. Bob Brooks understands that because Bob Brooks lived it.”
Reporter Lindsay Weber can be reached at Liweber@mcall.com.