Hakeem Jeffries and Josh Shapiro rallied for Democrat Bob Brooks, 100 days ahead of a competitive congressional race in Lehigh Valley

With 100 days until Election Day in Pennsylvania and across the country, top Democratic leaders rallied in the Lehigh Valley Sunday to support a Democrat they hope will defeat the Republican incumbent and help take control of Congress during the midterm elections this November.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and U.S. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries stood on a union hall stage with Democrat Bob Brooks, a firefighter and union leader, who is running for a House seat in a key Pennsylvania swing district, in front of a crowd of about 150 people.

“We have just 100 days until the midterm election, 100 days to change direction in this country. This is no longer a marathon; it’s a sprint,” Jeffries said. “And there’s no better place to begin that sprint than right here in the steelworkers union hall in Bethlehem.”

Jeffries is poised to become the speaker of the House — and the first Black speaker — if his party wins control in the midterms later this year. Democrats see winning Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District as a critical step in making Jeffries’ ascension happen, and taking action on a range of issues, from lowering gas prices to banning stock trading among members of Congress.

The visit comes as Republicans also seek to bolster GOP Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, the district’s vulnerable freshman who won his seat by just 1 percentage point in 2024, when President Donald Trump defeated Democrat Kamala Harris statewide. Trump visited the district in June, giving a speech about manufacturing, and a rambling range of other subjects, at the Macungie-based Mack Trucks facility — though he took nearly an hour to even mention Mackenzie by name.

Mackenzie has a financial edge over Brooks. He has raised a total of nearly $4.5 million, compared to Brooks’ $2.3 million. But Brooks outdid Mackenzie handily between April 30 and June 30, following Brooks’ first-place finish in the robust and competitive Democratic primary. He added roughly $1.2 million to his stockpile during that time period, while Mackenzie only took in about $631,000.

During the primary, Brooks was able to attract support from many ideological corners of the party, including Shapiro, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, who saw him as an unpolished outsider committed to the party’s values.

Brooks, who dropped out of college after a baseball injury, worked as a bartender and beer truck driver in the Lehigh Valley before later becoming a firefighter in Bethlehem. He also mowed lawns and plowed snow on the side.

Following his retirement from the fire department after more than 20 years of service, Brooks continues to serve as the president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association, where he’s represented about 8,000 firefighters across the state since 2021.

“I’ve lived in public housing. I’ve relied on food stamps when times were hard. I’ve had to choose between paying the medical bills and paying the mortgage. I’ve worked hard, and I made it out of a fire. I’m proud to be standing here today,” Brooks said.

“Now I want to take that experience with me to the halls of Congress, so we can actually pass laws that work for working people,” he said.

His first foray into politics began with a lobbying effort to lower the standards for first responders to have post-traumatic stress injuries covered by workers’ compensation, legislation that Shapiro signed in 2024.

Shapiro, the first-term Democrat, has also been using his broad popularity to support Democratic candidates downballot in competitive elections across Pennsylvania while he campaigns for his own gubernatorial reelection bid.

Last weekend near Harrisburg, Shapiro joined Pennsylvania Democrats to launch a new campaign for candidates in key state Senate seats and congressional districts, both of which he hopes to flip to Democrats as a show of his political influence ahead of a widely expected run for the presidency in 2028. He also boosted former local TV anchor Janelle Stelson, who is challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Scott Perry for the second time in the Harrisburg-based 10th District.

“One reason why we need Bob Brooks in the Congress of the United States is he’s a firefighter, and firefighters are always there for you,” Shapiro said, who referenced his gratitude to firefighters after an arsonist attacked his personal family home last year.

“When you spend a lifetime being there for people when they’re young, being there for people when they are hurting, being there for people when they need help, they’re more small. You have compassion in your heart. You’ve got a servant’s heart, and that’s the kind of people we need in the Congress of the United States,” he said.

Shapiro’s campaign said it has given more than $3.3 million to the state party and its election effort since the fall of 2025, as part of his signature effort to “put a check on Donald Trump’s chaos, cruelty, and corruption.”

Brooks’ and Stelson’s races are two of the four most competitive congressional contests in Pennsylvania this year. Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Bresnahan is facing a challenge from Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti in the 8th District, and Republican U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick is running against Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie in the 1st District.

Republicans are fighting to keep the competitive seats in GOP control. Mackenzie’s campaign manager blasted Brooks’ “dumpster fire candidacy” ahead of Sunday’s event.

“At every step of his career, Bob Brooks has put himself first, his politician buddies next, and his own workers last,” Andres Weller said, in a statement.

Among other news, Weller mentioned a leaked audio recording of Brooks that alleged Shapiro pushed his union to support the GOP candidate for Pennsylvania treasurer in the 2024 election.

Shapiro has denounced claims that he dissuaded the state firefighter’s union from backing the then-Democratic nominee Erin McClelland because of a personal grudge, and Brooks later said he misspoke in the recording.

All three men blasted Mackenzie for supporting cuts to Medicaid, as part of Trump’s 2025 “Big, Beautiful Bill.”

Jeffries, who had last appeared in Pennsylvania on July 2 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the vote for the Declaration of Independence, said if Democrats take the majority, they will also tackle “rampant corruption” and make life more affordable.

“As House Democrats, we will build an economy that works for everyday Americans and drive down the high cost of living in every possible area because life is too expensive,” he said. “That means the grocery store, the gas pump, and your housing costs. It also means that you should be able to go see a doctor and get the care that you need.”