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Ryan Mackenzie
Ryan Edward Mackenzie[citation needed] (born August 3, 1982)[1] is an American politician who is the U.S. representative from Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 2012 to 2024. Before redistricting, he represented the 134th district until his final term, when he was moved to the 187th district.[2][3] His mother is Milou Mackenzie, who is also a Lehigh Valley-area Republican state representative, in the 131st district. They were the first mother-son pair to simultaneously serve in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.[4] Mackenzie was elected to represent Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district in 2024, defeating incumbent Susan Wild.[5] Early life and educationMackenzie was born on August 3, 1982, in Allentown, Pennsylvania, the son of Charles and Milou Mackenzie. He graduated from Parkland High School in 2000 and from New York University with a degree in finance and international business in 2004. He obtained an MBA from Harvard Business School in 2010.[6] Pennsylvania House of RepresentativesIn 2012, Mackenzie was elected to represent District 134 in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. After redistricting, he ran for and won the District 187 seat in 2022. During the 2023-24 legislative session, Mackenzie was the Republican chair of the Labor and Industry Committee. He also served as co-chair of the International Relations Caucus.[7] Mackenzie previously served as majority chair of the House Government Oversight Committee, deputy majority whip, deputy chair of the House Majority Policy Committee, vice chair of the House Labor and Industry Committee, chair of the Financial Services and Banking Subcommittee with the House Commerce Committee, and chair of the Workforce Development Subcommittee with the Economic Recovery Task Force.[8] He has said that his top priorities include "creating jobs, protecting taxpayers, strengthening education, and reforming government".[9] U.S. House campaigns2018In 2017, Mackenzie announced his candidacy for the United States House of Representatives in Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district in 2018.[10] He withdrew from the race in March 2018 when the state Supreme Court created new district lines.[11] 2022In 2021, Mackenzie briefly ran for the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district.[12] He withdrew from the race, instead opting to run for reelection to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.[13] 2024In July 2023, Mackenzie again announced his candidacy for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district, this time for the 2024 election.[14] During his campaign, he called the issue of immigration a "top priority." Mackenzie also voiced support for the Israeli military campaign against Hamas, but opposed further aid to Ukraine amid the continuing Russian invasion.[15] On April 23, 2024, Mackenzie won the Republican nomination for the seat, defeating Kevin Dellicker (who also ran in 2022) and Maria Montero.[16] In the general election, Mackenzie defeated incumbent Democrat Susan Wild.[5] ControversiesIn 2020, Mackenzie was among more than 60 House Republicans who urged Congress to reject and decertify Pennsylvania's electoral votes in the 2020 presidential election.[17][18] Mackenzie faced criticism during his 2024 campaign when it was revealed that he had misrepresented his age on the dating app Tinder, listing himself as 29 instead of his actual age of 37,[19][20] leading women in his constituency to request an apology.[21] Wild ran advertisements highlighting the issue and his record of opposition to abortion; Mackenzie said Wild was attempting to "mischaracterize" his record and "deceive voters".[20] A spokesperson for his campaign stated that he was neither married nor engaged to his wife at the time.[22] Electoral history
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