Faced with loss of his district, state Rep. Bob Brooks opts not to run for re-election
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When the new maps for Pennsylvania’s legislative districts were released, state Rep. Bob Brooks was more than a little disappointed to discover his 54th District was being shifted across the state to the Norristown area.
On Thursday, the Murrysville Republican announced he will not seek re-election.
“Government has many forces pulling on it. I believe that you are best represented by your local government, and we need to return as much decision-making and control as possible to this body,” Brooks said.
On Wednesday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed the new legislative district maps and rejected final legal challenges to them, clearing the way for their use in the May primary.
The current 54th District will largely be absorbed by the neighboring 55th and 56th districts, served respectively by Brooks’ fellow Republican state Reps. George Dunbar and Jason Silvis.
The Legislative Reapportionment Commission released the final state House and Senate maps in early February. While the upper chamber’s map is unlikely to radically alter the composition of its members, the state House map creates several additional seats that could be won by Democrats. Advocates say that’s because the map undoes decades of partisan gerrymandering and reflects changes in population that benefited Democrat-heavy areas.
Republican Kerry Benninghoff, R-Centre County, was the sole member of the commission to vote against the most recent version of the maps. Benninghoff also filed one of the legal challenges, which was ultimately rejected this week.
Brooks said he believes state government could use a little streamlining.
“State government needs to be run more like a business than it is today. It should balance fiscal responsibilities while producing a good product,” he said. “In addition, I believe that we need to reduce the size of the Legislature.”
But while Pennsylvania will keep 203 seats in the state House, where those representatives come from will shift — largely to the greater Philadelphia area.
Census data from 2020 shows that Pennsylvania’s rural areas are losing residents, while urban and suburban areas — primarily in the southeast — are gaining them.
For his part, Brooks will have plenty to keep him busy post-Harrisburg, between his service on the boards of Westinghouse Air Brake and First National Bank-Pittsburgh, and his partial ownership of several major- and minor-league sports teams as part of the Brooks Sports Group.
But he also would like to see state officials doing more for their residents.
“Our next governor must commit to growing the economy of the Commonwealth, which means more jobs and less government roadblocks,” Brooks said.