Rob Bresnahan

Rob Bresnahan
Official House portrait of Bresnahan smiling in front of the U.S. flag, wearing a black suit with American and Pennsylvanian flags lapel pin, white shirt, and blue tie.
Official portrait, 2025
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 8th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2025
Preceded byMatt Cartwright
Personal details
Born
Robert Paul Bresnahan Jr.

(1990-04-22) April 22, 1990
Kingston, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Chelsea Strub
​
(m. 2025)​
EducationUniversity of Scranton (BA)
WebsiteHouse website
Campaign website

Robert Paul Bresnahan Jr. (/ˈbrɛznəhæn/ BREZ-nə-han; born April 22, 1990) is an American politician and businessman serving as the United States representative for Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district since 2025. He is a member of the Republican Party.[1][2]

He defeated incumbent Matt Cartwright in the 2024 election. He took office on January 3, 2025.

Early life and education

Bresnahan was born on April 22, 1990, in Kingston, Pennsylvania.[3] He grew up in Wyoming, Pennsylvania.[4] Bresnahan graduated from Wyoming Seminary in 2008.[5] Bresnahan later studied business at the University of Scranton and was on the golf team.[6] He graduated from the university in 2012.[5]

Early career

At the age of 19, Bresnahan became the chief financial officer of his grandfather's highway electrical business, Kuharchik Construction in Exeter, Pennsylvania.[4] After graduating from the University of Scranton, Bresnahan took over as CEO in 2013.

In 2023, Bresnahan partnered Kuharchik Construction with Midwestern Electric near Chicago, Illinois.[7]

Bresnahan is the owner of RPB Ventures, a real estate development company. The bulk of Bresnahan's real estate projects are on and around Main Street in Pittston, Pennsylvania.[8][9][10][11][12]

Bresnahan has served on a number of voluntary boards in Northeastern Pennsylvania including as interim president of the SPCA of Luzerne County board of directors, past president of Wyoming Rotary Club, and treasurer of the TecBRIDGE board and Automated Vehicle Coalition.[4]

He also served on the boards for Junior Achievement of NEPA, Big Brothers Big Sisters of NEPA, Luzerne County Industrial Development Authority, National Electrical Contractors Association and IBEW 163.[4]

Currently, Bresnahan serves on the boards of the SPCA of Luzerne County, Forty Fort Cemetery Association, and Catholic Youth Center.[4]

United States House of Representatives

Elections

In October 2023, Bresnahan filed to run for the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district.[13] The district includes Lackawanna County, Wayne County, and Pike County along with the majority of Luzerne County and Monroe County in Northeastern Pennsylvania.[14] In the November 2024 general election, Bresnahan defeated incumbent Democrat Matt Cartwright.[15]

Tenure

In May 2025, Bresnahan was one of six House Republicans who voted for a GOP-backed budget bill that included substantial Medicaid cuts, despite previously pledging to oppose them. The bill also contained tax provisions that could personally benefit Bresnahan, who reported over $137,000 in pass-through income that would be eligible for expanded deductions under Section 199A tax code revisions.[16]

Committee assignments

For the 119th Congress:[17]

Personal life

Bresnahan married Chelsea Strub, a former news anchor and reporter at WNEP-TV, on August 16, 2025.[19] His net worth is estimated at $48 million.[20]

Stock trading

In April 2025, The New York Times reported that Bresnahan, who had campaigned on prohibiting stock trading by members of Congress, reported 264 stock trades, purchasing up to $1.7 million in stock since taking office in January 2025. His trades during this period included stocks related to fields regulated by the United States House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, on which he serves, including Caterpillar, CSX, and Boeing.[21] In June 2025, Bresnahan sold between $1,000-$15,000 of shares of Centene Corporation, a healthcare company offering state-run Medicaid programs. Centene's stock subsequently dropped 40% in the following weeks, during debate and passage of the GOP-backed budget bill, for which Bresnahan voted.[22] By August, Bresnahan had traded $7.24 million in stocks.[20] According to the New York Times, the number of trades made Bresnahan the second-most prolific stock trader in Congress.[23]

During his campaign, Bresnahan said he supported prohibiting members of Congress from trading stocks and later introduced a bill to do so. After facing scrutiny for his own stock trades, Bresnahan said he would establish a blind trust in May 2025, but later said the House Ethics Committee's rules made the process difficult. Bresnahan says that he does not personally trade stock, instead his financial advisors do the trade. When asked if he should tell his advisors to stop trading he said, "And then do what with it? Just leave it all in the accounts and just leave it there and lose money and go broke?"[20]

Electoral history

Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rob Bresnahan 42,365 100.0
Total votes 42,365 100.0
Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district, 2024[24]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rob Bresnahan Jr. 195,663 50.8
Democratic Matt Cartwright (incumbent) 189,411 49.2
Total votes 385,074 100.0
Republican gain from Democratic

References

  1. ^ "Bresnahan Wins Pennsylvania House Race, Flipping Seat to GOP". Bloomberg.com. November 6, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  2. ^ "Rob Bresnahan claims victory in Pennsylvania 8th Congressional race". Abc27. November 6, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  3. ^ https://ballotpedia.org/Rob_Bresnahan_Jr
  4. ^ a b c d e Allabaugh, Denise (October 2, 2021). "CEO leads construction business at a young age". Wilkes-Barre Citizens' Voice. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  5. ^ a b Horvath, Jeff (October 30, 2024). "Cartwright, Bresnahan talk inflation, economy and guns as election nears". The Citizens' Voice. pp. A1A4. Retrieved August 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Robert Bresnahan - 2011-12 - Men's Golf". University of Scranton. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  7. ^ Herriott, Ashton (July 19, 2023). "CAI Announces First Close of Seventh Fund and First Transaction – Midwestern Electric's Partnership with Kuharchik Construction | CAI Capital Partners". Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  8. ^ Dispatch, Tony Callaio For Sunday (January 15, 2022). "Bresnahan invests in Pittston". The Sunday Dispatch. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  9. ^ Allabaugh, Denise (January 14, 2023). "Pittston sees a surge in new businesses". Wilkes-Barre Citizens' Voice. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  10. ^ Dispatch, Tony Callaio For Sunday (April 2, 2023). "Landmark, Burns building projects progress". The Sunday Dispatch. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  11. ^ Dispatch, Tony Callaio For Sunday (July 23, 2022). "Work on The Landmark continues". The Sunday Dispatch. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  12. ^ Corner, Tony Callaio My; Corner, Your (January 8, 2022). "My Corner, Your Corner: Bresnahan investing in Pittston". The Sunday Dispatch. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  13. ^ Leader, Times (October 4, 2023). "Bresnahan files to run against Cartwright in 8th District". Times Leader. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  14. ^ "Pennsylvania Redistricting US Congress | Voting & Election Information | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania". www.pa.gov. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  15. ^ Lillis, Mike (November 6, 2024). "Republican Rob Bresnahan ousts Matt Cartwright in Pennsylvania". The Hill. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
  16. ^ Baratta, James (May 22, 2025). "The Curious Case of the Republican Medicaid Turncoats". The American Prospect. Retrieved May 23, 2025.
  17. ^ "Bresnahan to serve on three House committees, including transportation and infrastructure". Scranton Times-Tribune. December 18, 2024. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
  18. ^ "Graves Announces T&I Subcommittee Vice Chairs". Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure. February 26, 2025.
  19. ^ Halpin, James (August 18, 2025). "Bresnahan stalker apologizes as he is granted parole". The Citizens' Voice. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  20. ^ a b c Kerneckel, Makenzie; Terruso, Julia (August 10, 2025). "Rob Bresnahan's stock trades fuel doubts about GOP hold on key Pa. swing seat". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
  21. ^ Karni, Annie (April 5, 2025). "He Said He Would Ban Congressional Stock Trading. Now in Office, He Trades Freely". The New York Times – via NYTimes.com.
  22. ^ "Rob Bresnahan sold Centene Corp (CNC:US) on 2025-05-15". Capitol Trades. Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  23. ^ Karni, Annie (August 16, 2025). "Congressman's Stock Trades Draw More Scrutiny After Key Votes". The New York Time. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  24. ^ "Tuesday, November 5, 2024 2024 Presidential Election (Official Returns) Statewide". electionresults.pa.gov. Retrieved February 3, 2025.
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