Politics & Government
Indicted Rep. Duncan Hunter Wins Sixth Term
Despite being under federal indictment for alleged misuse of campaign funds, Rep. Duncan Hunter defeated challenger Ammar Campa-Najjar.
SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA – A federal indictment for alleged misuse of campaign funds couldn't stop the reelection of Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, who was gearing up Wednesday for another term after defeating Democratic challenger Ammar Campa-Najjar.
With all San Diego County precincts reporting from Tuesday's election, Hunter finished with roughly 54 percent of the vote in Congressional District 50, compared to about 46 percent for Campa-Najjar.
The district includes parts of Riverside County and San Diego County, including San Marcos and Escondido. Despite projections of Hunter's victory from multiple news outlets Tuesday night, Riverside and San Diego counties were the final two counties in the state to complete its vote tallies Wednesday morning.
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A federal grand jury indicted Hunter and his wife Margaret in August over allegations of improperly using campaign funds between 2009 and 2016 for personal expenses, such as vacations and dental bills. In spite of the indictment, Hunter maintained a polling lead over Campa-Najjar, a small business owner, for most of September and October.
But while Hunter remained ahead of Campa-Najjar in the race, his lead dwindled from 15 percentage points in a late September poll from Monmouth University to just three points in an Oct. 25-29 poll from SurveyUSA.
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His shrinking lead could have been due to a much-publicized TV ad released by Hunter's campaign in September that framed Campa-Najjar as a terrorist sympathizer and claimed he is supported by the fundamentalist Sunni Islamic extremist group the Muslim Brotherhood. The ad also called Campa-Najjar a security risk, despite the fact he served as a White House staffer during the Obama administration.
"The people of CA-50 are proving that when we come together not as Democrats or Republicans but as Californians and Americans, we reject the tired, corrupt politics of Duncan Hunter," Campa-Najjar said in October. "The voters don't want a congressman who is going to spend time in jail."
Hunter, a former U.S. Marine and the son of former Rep. Duncan Lee Hunter, has served in Congress since 2009. Hunter first represented District 52, but redistricting after the 2010 census shifted him to the 50th District.
By City News Service
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
