On Thursday evening, Lamont McClure stood in front of a crowd at the Northampton County Courthouse just as he did in 2017 when he announced his candidacy for County Executive. This time, he stood behind the podium to announce his campaign for Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Prior to his time as County Executive, McClure served on Northampton County Council from 2006 to 2013. Since 2018, McClure has utilized his County Executive role to improve local services, assist small businesses during the Covid pandemic, preserve farmland and open space, and address the fentanyl crisis.
McClure took time during his speech on Thursday to share his feeling of obligation to the people of the Lehigh Valley and beyond, saying that public service was instilled in him from an early age. He called the recent work of the Trump Administration “utter chaos” and called on Congress to “grow a backbone and stand up to what they’re doing.”
McClure announced in January that he wouldn’t seek another term as Northampton County Executive. The news surprised many, as he had expressed his desire to run again as recently as December. Following the announcement, he said he was “exploring other ways to serve the public.”
Rumors circulated this week that he was chasing the U.S. House seat after he promoted a “major announcement” for Thursday. The domain name McClureForCongress was also registered last week.
Opposing McClure in the race is Republican Ryan Mackenzie, who won the seat from incumbent Democrat Susan Wild in November.
Republican County Council member Thomas Giovanni was the first to announce his campaign for Executive following McClure’s shift. County Controller Tara Zrinski and business owner Amy Cozzee will run on the Democratic side.
