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Inside the House race to unseat the indicted, Islamaphobic Rep. Duncan Hunter in California's 50th

Duncan Hunter is running blatantly Islamophobic ads against his opponent, Ammar Campa-Najjar, a Latino Arab-American (who's a born-again Christian)

SAN DIEGO, California — Blatantly racist ads and a recent indictment have made the race in California’s 50th district one of the most interesting — and emblematic — of 2018. And with days to go before the election, it's looking more like a contest.

Duncan Hunter, the incumbent Republican and one of Trump’s first supporters, is under indictment for using a quarter-million dollars in campaign funds on personal expenses. He's also running Islamophobic ads against his opponent Ammar Campa-Najjar, a Latino Arab-American (who's actually a Christian).

Read more: Rep. Duncan Hunter, who blamed his wife for campaign finance scandal, spent money on at least 5 “personal relationships”

Najjar, meanwhile, who was a staffer in Barack Obama’s Labor Department, is trying his best not to engage, instead pushing his progressive platform and reminding voters that Hunter is facing criminal charges.

"The day he was indicted [in August], I think the world saw him for what he was, which is a crook," Najjar told VICE News. "I think that's what part of our job is, to explain to them what an indictment is. It's not just a parking violation."

VICE News traveled to the district to see what people think of the indictment, the Islamaphobia, and unusually close race in what is normally a Republican stronghold.