Childcare costs become an issue in Pennsylvania's competitive 7th District race

Childcare costs are shaping the choices of some undecided voters in Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District, a closely contested Lehigh Valley seat that could help decide which party controls the U.S. House, according to reporting by Spotlight PA and NBC10 Philadelphia.

CBS Philadelphia reported that Republicans won the district two years ago by a margin of a little over 4,000 votes. Spotlight PA and NBC10 cited a Franklin and Marshall College poll finding that about 16% of the district's voters were still undecided as of September.

Both candidates have addressed childcare in their campaigns, according to the two outlets. Democratic nominee Bob Brooks, a retired firefighter, has proposed universal prekindergarten, wider access to full-day kindergarten, more Head Start funding and broader eligibility for federal childcare aid. He has pointed to his own role helping care for his two granddaughters.

The incumbent, first-term Republican Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, a father of two children under 3, has favored tax-based measures. He cosponsored legislation to expand the federal childcare tax credit, which was later included in President Donald Trump's broad tax and spending bill along with larger incentives for employers that provide or subsidize childcare. In a statement, Mackenzie said he would keep working with both parties to support working families.

Spotlight PA and NBC10 profiled several Lehigh Valley residents weighing the issue. Jenny Escolastico, an Air Force veteran living outside Allentown who voted for Trump in 2024, said she stays home with her two young children because care would cost more than she could earn working full time. "Childcare is another rent, another car note," she said. She is considering voting Democratic this year, the outlets reported.

Lerin Hagenbuch of Allentown, a registered Republican and special education teacher, said she has not decided how to vote and questioned why the country has not moved toward universal childcare. Becky Fisher, a Bethlehem preschool teacher earning under $20 an hour, said she is also undecided. "Every parent is exhausted," Fisher said.

The outlets cited Child Care Aware of America data showing childcare costs grew faster than inflation from 2020 to 2024, with full-time care averaging more than $13,000 nationally in 2025. A June 2025 AP-NORC poll found about three-quarters of U.S. adults viewed childcare costs as a major problem.

Trump campaigned on using tariff revenue to lower childcare costs, a plan that has not taken shape, and more recently voiced doubts about federal childcare spending, according to the reports.

The Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy, a political action committee that backs Democrats, said it has spent $60 million this year on races in a dozen states, the outlets reported.

Compiled by True News from reporting by Spotlight PA, NBC10 Philadelphia and CBS Philadelphia. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/320