In California, former Congressman Darrell Issa will challenge incumbent Congressman Duncan Hunter

WASHINGTON – Darrell Issa, the former nine-member congressman from California, will be trying to return to Congress by calling representative Duncan Hunter, who was indicted last year.

Mr. Issa is expected to announce his challenge at a press conference Thursday morning in the San Diego District, according to two sources close to his decision. It had been months since he publicly reflected on his wish to return to Congress and set up an exploratory committee in August.

"I have received so much encouragement from my supporters within the district, the state, and the whole country," Issa said in a statement in August. committee website.

Mr. Issa will probably charge the Republicans as a safer alternative than the outgoing president. Mr. Hunter was indicted last August. He and his wife, Margaret, are accused of spending more than $ 250,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses – including holidays in Italy, fast food shopping and airline tickets for a domestic rabbit – and then lied to the Federal Electoral Commission. Mr Hunter remained provocative and characterized the indictment as politically motivated. His campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mr Issa's imminent challenge.

Mr. Hunter, an ally of Trump, was able to get re-elected last year despite the publication of the indictment, a 48-page document describing how the Hunters lived beyond their means and in at least two cases, invoked the US military their expenses. He beat his Democratic opponent, Ammar Campa-Najjar, by three points in a district that had won President Trump 15 points in 2016. Mr. Campa-Najjar has pledged to question Mr. Hunter again and to win.

Mr Issa is only the last Republican party to want to challenge Mr Hunter, California conservatives fearing that the incumbent legislator will be sentenced. Five other candidates, including Carl DeMaio, who runs a conservative radio show and is openly gay, put the hat in the ring, although three of these candidates are expected Thursday to support Mr. Issa.

Mr. Issa is perhaps best known in Washington as the former chairman of the House oversight committee who has used his post to investigate the Obama administration's handling of the attacks. in Benghazi, on targeting by the Internal Revenue Service of conservative groups and the "Fast and Furious" of the arms trafficking scandal. In 2018, Issa announced that he would not run again in the 49th congressional district after narrowly defeating his Democratic challenger in 2016.

President Donald Trump Last September, Issa hired Issa as head of the US Agency for Trade and Development, but Issa's confirmation was blocked earlier this month by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Senate, after the highest Democratic representative of the group had expressed concerns about an incident cited by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Audit of Issa's filed antecedents. The delay, paired with polls released last month showing DeMaio leading other Republicans, prompted Issa's decision to run for office, Republicans familiar with his thinking.