Running unopposed in District 8, Democrat Paige Cognetti clinched the nomination to challenge Rep. Rob Bresnahan Jr. (R-Penn.) in November. Bresnahan narrowly flipped the seat in 2024, grabbing it from then-Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Penn.) with a 1.6-point margin.
Democrat Bob Brooks prevailed in a crowded primary for District 7, beating Ryan Crosswell, Lamont McClure, and Carol Obando-Derstine. The Associated Press called the race for Brooks at 9:46 p.m. ET on Tuesday, with the former union boss leading the pack by double digits.
Brooks will face Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-Penn.) in the general election in what could be a tight race.
Winning with the closest margin of victory for any Pennsylvania House race in 2024, Mackenzie beat then-Rep. Susan Wild (D-Penn.) 50.4 percent to 49.4 percent that year.
Both Mackenzie and Bresnahan easily clinched their nominations, running unopposed with no GOP challengers on Tuesday.
Brooks, president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association, had been buoyed by a number of endorsements from key Democratic lawmakers.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Penn.) pledged their support for Brooks ahead of the Tuesday primary.
A previous senior advisor to Sen. Bob Casey (D-Penn.), Obando-Derstine had secured endorsements from Wild and Reps. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.), Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.), and Andrea Salinas (D-Ore.).
“For me, it didn’t move the needle one way or another," Bethlehem City Council President Rachel Leon told The Epoch Times.
“I know so many people that felt like the DNC was coming and telling them exactly who to vote for, and it’s like, come on, it’s a freaking primary. You’re gonna support who you support, and then you’re gonna head out of the freaking dodge and leave us with it,” Leon added, declining to say who she backed in the race.
Stephanie Marmolejos, who voted at the Bethlehem Visitors Center polling station on Tuesday for District 7, said she supported Brooks because of his progressive endorsements and policy positions. Her biggest concerns are wage inequality and affordable housing.
Others like Christopher Snyder, who works in the healthcare industry in the Lehigh Valley, said they were backing McClure instead. Critical of Sen. John Fetterman's (D-Penn.) turn to the center after running as a progressive in 2022, Snyder said he was worried Brooks might do the same.
District 7 is in southeastern Pennsylvania and includes all of Carbon, Lehigh, and Northampton Counties, as well as portions of Monroe County. Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton are major cities located in the district.
District 8 to the northeast includes the cities of Scranton and Wilkes-Barre and encompasses all of Wayne, Pike, and Lackawanna Counties. Portions of Luzerne and Monroe Counties are also included.
Election analysts with the Cook Political Report rated both races in November as toss-ups, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has targeted both districts as pickup opportunities this year.