Rep. Duncan Hunter To Resign From Congress After Guilty Plea

SAN DIEGO, CA — Embattled Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) will resign his seat in Congress next week, more than a month after he pleaded guilty to a charge of misusing campaign funds for personal expenses.

Hunter will resign effective Jan. 13, multiple outlets reported. He is set to be sentenced on March 17, facing a maximum of five years in prison.

Hunter and his wife were indicted last summer on five dozen criminal counts, including wire fraud, conspiracy and falsification of records. He initially pleaded not guilty to the count alleging he misused $250,000 in campaign funds for personal uses ranging from vacations to extramarital affairs to a plane ticket for his wife's pet rabbit, but changed his plea to guilty in December.

Hunter, who represents San Diego County as well as the Temecula area in Riverside County, has served in Congress since 2009. He succeeded his father, also named Duncan Hunter, who represented the region for nearly 30 years.

Despite his guilty plea, Hunter will likely continue receiving his taxpayer-funded congressional pension, the Los Angeles Times reported.

"It has been an honor to serve the people of California's 50th District, and I greatly appreciate the trust they have put in me over these last 11 years," Hunter wrote in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, according to reports.

Hunter's wife Margaret pleaded guilty in June to a federal conspiracy charge related to the alleged misuse of campaign funds.