ALLENTOWN — Ahead of the Nov. 3 election, voters in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District have identified government and politicians as two of the state's most important problems.
The district is represented by Republican U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, who flipped the seat in 2024. He will face Democrat Bob Brooks, president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association.
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report changed its rating of the race from “toss-up” to “lean Democrat” on Oct. 9.
The purple district covers Lehigh and Northampton Counties, including Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton, as well as all of Carbon County and part of Monroe County.
Members of Congress, elected for two-year terms, control federal taxes and spending, as well as develop and vote on legislation, including anti-corruption laws. They also investigate government agencies, programs, and officials.
While campaign finance reform is a central part of Brooks’ platform, Mackenzie has not taken a public stance on those issues. In response to questions from Spotlight PA, his campaign said he's working to “reduce the influence of money in politics.”
The candidates align most on anti-corruption issues, favoring banning members of Congress from stock trading and preventing members of Congress from using prediction markets, as well as imposing term limits.
Below, we break down the two major party candidates’ positions on these issues ahead of the Nov. 3 election. You can learn more about their positions during a WFMZ debate scheduled for 10 a.m. Oct. 21.
Campaign finance reform
Brooks’ “Put Out the Fire” agenda includes passing a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United, a controversial 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down prohibitions on corporate and labor union election spending.
He describes the decision in his agenda as “One of the most disastrous things to happen to American politics.”
In the ruling, former Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that restrictions on independent spending by corporations and other outside groups limit their speech, and violate the First Amendment, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.
Lower courts, in applying the ruling, extended it to lift restrictions on almost all fundraising and spending by groups that claim to be separate from candidates, many known as “super PACs.”
In the years since the decision, election spending has reached “unprecedented heights,” according to a 2025 report from OpenSecrets, a nonprofit that tracks and analyzes money in U.S. politics. Outside spending in the 2008 election cycle totaled $574 million. In 2024, outside spending came close to $4.5 billion — and most of that money was spent by super PACs.
Super PACS regularly accept money from 501(c)(4) groups, which aren’t required to disclose their donors. “Those 501(c)(4) groups that decline to reveal their donors are known as ‘dark money’ groups,” per OpenSecrets, “and when they provide funding to super PACs, they hide the identity of super PAC donors.”
Brooks also says he favors a ban on corporate PAC money in politics on his campaign website.
Mackenzie’s campaign website does not include a position on campaign finance reform. In a response to an inquiry about Mackenzie’s position, a campaign spokesperson said he “is working with both sides to find commonsense solutions that reduce the influence of money in politics.”
Federal filings show Mackenzie accepts direct corporate PAC money.
Mackenzie’s campaign also claimed Brooks “was the leading beneficiary of dark money in the Democratic primary." The campaign sent a link to a July OpenSecrets story, which found that Stronger Together PA spent over $1.8 million on ads supporting Brooks during the primary. Stronger Together PA is a super PAC, which must disclose its donors, unlike a dark money group.
Stock trading ban
Congressional stock trading has become a major talking point ahead of the election. House members, who have access to information the public doesn’t, are allowed to buy and sell stocks, but must disclose trades of more than $1,000 within 30 days.
As of mid-December, members had made 13,324 trades totaling $635.57 million in 2025, according to nonpartisan watchdog group Common Cause.
Both Brooks and Mackenzie want to ban members of Congress from trading stocks.
Mackenzie, who reported owning no individual stocks on his financial disclosure, is among the 103 co-sponsors of the Transparent Representation Upholding Service and Trust in Congress Act. Introduced in January 2025 by U.S. Rep. Seth Magaziner (D., R.I.), the legislation would require a member of Congress, as well as any spouse or dependent child, to either divest from individual stock holdings or move their investments into a qualified blind trust during their House tenure.
Mackenzie was also one of 144 co-sponsors of the Restore Trust in Congress Act. Introduced by U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R., Texas), the legislation would ban members of Congress, their spouses, and dependent children from owning or trading individual stocks and other covered investments.
Neither legislation has seen a vote.
In July, Mackenzie voted in favor of the Stop Insider Trading Act. Introduced by U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil (R., Wis.), it would prohibit members of Congress, their spouses, and dependent children from purchasing stocks. It would also require public notice before they sell stocks.
“Members of Congress are sent to Washington to serve their constituents, not themselves,” Mackenzie said in a news release following the vote. “The American people deserve confidence that their elected officials are making decisions based on what’s best for their country — not their own financial interests.
While the House approved the legislation by a Republican majority in the 232-198 vote, many Democrats voted against the bill due to provisions that would exempt the president from the trading ban and include a photo ID requirement for voters in federal elections.
The measure failed in the Senate on Sept. 30 after every Democratic and independent senator voted against it.
Also in July, Mackenzie introduced the Candidate Investment Transparency and Ethics Act, which would require candidates for all federal elected offices to divest from individual stocks and other securities or place them in a blind trust. It has not seen a vote.
“The best way to stop members of Congress from trading stocks is to prevent them from ever starting,” Mackenzie said in a news release. “It’s not enough for candidates to make promises on this issue; they need to put their money where their mouth is.”
Brooks also supports banning members of Congress from trading stocks, saying on his campaign website, “No stock trading in Congress. If you want to get rich, don’t run for office.”
His platform includes a section called “End and expose government corruption,” describing Washington, D.C., as “full of people rigging the system while working families get crushed,” listing “Members of Congress day trading stocks while writing the rules” as an example.
However, a financial disclosure document Brooks filed showed he and his wife continue to “personally invest” in several dozen individual stocks, NOTUS reported earlier this year. They include Palantir, a company co-founded by Republican megadonor Peter Thiel that provides technology to ICE to find and deport undocumented immigrants, as well as Chevron, Meta, Nvidia, Tesla, and Amazon, as well as several pharmaceutical and health insurance companies.
The couple uses a professional investment management firm to steer their stock holdings, according to the disclosure. A spokesperson for Brooks’ campaign told NOTUS he has never personally traded stocks and “once in Congress, neither he nor his wife will own individual stocks.”
Brooks also supports a ban on members of Congress and their staff from participating in prediction markets, a campaign spokesperson said, adding, “The potential for insider trading is enormous and unacceptable."
A spokesperson for Mackenzie’s campaign said he "has a strong track record of supporting government reform legislation,” including stopping members of Congress from using prediction markets.
Mackenzie co-sponsored a resolution, introduced in May by U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson (R., Iowa), that would amend House rules to prohibit members from trading on prediction markets. It has not seen a vote.
Prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi allow users to buy and sell binary event contracts on the outcome of future events, including elections. Over the past several months, U.S. Rep. James Comer (R., Ky.), chair of the House Oversight Committee, opened an investigation into what several platforms are doing to root out insider trading.
Ban on lobbying
Brooks’ agenda includes a lifetime ban on members of Congress from lobbying the federal government.
“It is shameful that members of Congress regularly cash out to become lobbyists after they retire,” he says in campaign materials reviewed by Spotlight PA. “And when they’re angling for their next job, they’re not looking out for working people when voting in Washington.”
A spokesperson for Mackenzie’s campaign did not respond to an inquiry about the representative’s position.
Currently, members of Congress are banned from lobbying for one year after leaving office.
Term limits
Imposing term limits on members of Congress is another point of agreement between the campaigns. Currently, there is no limit on the number of terms a member of Congress can serve.
On his campaign website, Mackenzie says “serving in Congress should be a commitment, not a career.”
In 2023, Mackenzie signed the U.S. Term Limits Constitutional Amendment Pledge, agreeing to co-sponsor and vote for an amendment that would limit House members to three terms.
“Too many members of Congress are out of touch with the people they were elected to represent,” Mackenzie said. “Term limits would break the stranglehold these politicians have on the American people. In Congress, I’ll back term limits for elected officials as well as bureaucrats.”
A joint resolution introduced in January by U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman (R., S.C.) would amend the Constitution to create a three-term limit for members of Congress, and Mackenzie is listed as a co-sponsor.
Brooks is also in favor of term limits, saying on his campaign website, “No more lifetime politicians.” In campaign materials reviewed by Spotlight PA, he says members of Congress should be limited to five terms, or 10 years. If elected, he says he will serve a maximum of five terms.