Former Congressman Darrell Issa (R.-Calif.) has announced his intentions to run for a different seat in the House of Representatives, according to Fox News.
The businessman and former nine-term congressman will run for California’s 50th congressional district, located in San Diego. Both numerically and geographically, the district neighbors Issa’s former district, the Orange County-based 49th district, from which Issa retired in 2018. He previously represented the 48th district in his first term, before it was redrawn into the 49th.
The 50th district is now held by fellow Republican Duncan D. Hunter, who has come under scrutiny recently for allegations of campaign finance fraud, though no evidence has emerged to support these claims. The 42-year-old former Marine has been in Congress since 2008, when he succeeded his father, Duncan L. Hunter, in the 52nd district, and has represented the 50th district since 2012. Hunter won his closest re-election bid in 2018, winning 52 percent of the vote against a Palestinian Democrat named Ammar Campa-Najjar.
Of the 53 congressional districts in California, only 7 are held by Republicans after their heavy losses in 2018. Hunter’s seat is widely considered the most competitive of the remaining Republican-held seats. Prior to Issa’s announcement, Hunter was facing six Republican challengers; four of those challengers dropped out and endorsed Issa’s bid after he joined the race.