Former Trump advisor George Papadopoulos running for Hill’s seat

George Papadopoulos announces his candidacy for California's 25th congressional district. Courtesy photo
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The pool of candidates interested in running for Rep. Katie Hill’s seat following the announcement of her resignation Sunday keeps growing, as George Papadopoulos joins the race.

On Tuesday, the erstwhile Donald Trump campaign adviser filed with the Federal Election Commission to officially run for California’s 25th Congressional District race as a Republican. 

He joins several other candidates vying for Hill’s seat, including Assemblywoman Christy Smith, D-Santa Clarita; Lancaster City Councilwoman Angela Underwood Jacobs; Mark Cripe, a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department sergeant; former naval officer Mike Garcia; and business owner David Rudnick. 

Several of the candidates, including Jacobs, Papadopoulos and Rudnick, have indicated interest in filling in Hill’s seat sooner through a special election when Gov. Gavin Newsom schedules one. 

“I’m definitely staying in the race and now the special election; I almost had to suspend my campaign for health reasons,” said Rudnick on Tuesday. 

Former Rep. Steve Knight, the Republican who was unseated by Hill in the 2018 election, also has expressed interest in running for the seat again.

At least one national news outlet has reported current California Secretary of State Alex Padilla is also considering a run, although no paperwork appeared to have been filed with the FEC as of Tuesday. His office said it could not comment on the matter.  

In a tweet Sunday following Hill’s resignation announcement, Papadopoulos said, “California’s 25th Congressional District is wide open for the taking. Someone has to step up. I love my state too much to see it run down by candidates like Hill.” 

Papadopoulos served a 12-day prison sentence in late 2018 following Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s charge against him for false statements to FBI agents about his contacts with London-based professor Joseph Mifsud, who claimed he possessed thousands of emails related to Hillary Clinton. 

Papadopoulos had previously considered running for another California district in the 2018 midterm elections, according to The Telegraph.

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