GOP congressman’s hot pink stiletto workout leaks as allies hammer Democrat over drag queen pic
Pennsylvania Republican congressman Rob Bresnahan is facing scrutiny after a 2023 video resurfaced showing him trying on hot-pink stiletto heels for a charity race, just as his campaign faces backlash over an attack advert targeting his Democratic rival. The footage, taken ahead of the Paint Pittston Pink Gentlemen's Dash, a fundraiser for cancer research in which men run in high heels, has emerged amid an increasingly bitter and personal contest in Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District. The row centres on a campaign advert from Bresnahan's team and the National Republican Congressional Committee that features Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti alongside drag performer Lady Lydia, accusing Cognetti of backing policies to let men into girls' bathrooms and women's sport, despite no public evidence she has made such claims.
The photograph used in the advert was taken at a 2025 Pride flag-raising event at Scranton City Hall. Lady Lydia, also known as Frank Carey, has launched a GoFundMe campaign, raising nearly $3,000, to fund legal action to have the advert removed, arguing it uses her likeness without permission and unfairly singles her out. Republicans have refused to back down, with an NRCC spokesman pointing to photos of children at the Pride event and highlighting an alternative online name used by Carey, while accusing Cognetti of enlisting "left-wing buddies" to shield her from scrutiny.
- Video of GOP Rep. Bresnahan trying on pink heels for charity resurfaces amid campaign row.
- His team's advert links Democrat rival Cognetti to a drag performer over trans policies.
- Drag performer Lady Lydia crowdfunds legal action to remove the advert.
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Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District is home to a fiercely contested race between Republican congressman Rob Bresnahan and Democrat Paige Cognetti, the mayor of Scranton. The two camps have been trading increasingly personal attacks, with Bresnahan's campaign and the National Republican Congressional Committee running an advert that uses a photo of Cognetti with a drag performer known as Lady Lydia to suggest she supports policies on bathrooms and women's sport, a claim she has not publicly made.
Lady Lydia, whose real name is Frank Carey, was photographed with Cognetti at a Pride flag-raising event in Scranton in 2025, and has since crowdfunded money to pursue legal action to get the advert taken down, saying it uses her image without consent. As that dispute has played out, an older video has resurfaced of Bresnahan trying on pink stiletto heels in 2023 ahead of a local charity run in which men race in high heels to raise money for cancer research.
The row matters because it reflects how personal and image-driven this congressional contest has become, with both sides using photographs and footage from unrelated events to score points against each other ahead of the election.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Supporters of the advert argue that campaigns are entitled to highlight matters of genuine public concern, including debates over bathroom access and eligibility rules in women's sport, and that using imagery from an official, publicly attended City Hall event is fair game rather than fabrication. They contend that Mayor Cognetti's presence alongside Lady Lydia at a civic event she hosted is a legitimate basis for questioning her associations and priorities, and that robust, even uncomfortable, scrutiny of elected officials is part of normal political contest rather than personal harassment.
The case against
Critics of the advert argue it crosses from legitimate debate into misrepresentation and exploitation, since there is no public evidence Cognetti has advocated the specific policies the advert attributes to her, making the claim misleading on its face. They also argue that using a private performer's image and alternative identity without consent, and subjecting her to unwanted national attention and legal costs, unfairly drags a non-candidate into a race she did not choose to join, and that dignity and consent should limit how campaigns deploy other people's likenesses even when the underlying event was public.