Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter of San Diego, California, one of President Donald Trump's earliest backers in his presidential campaign, will plead guilty to at least one count of misusing campaign funds.

After the Federal Election Commission launched an investigation in 2016, Hunter was indicted two years later on accusations of misusing $250,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses — such as groceries, video games, expensive meals, and visits to their family dentist. His trial was scheduled for January 22, 2020.

"That's not going to happen now," Hunter said in an interview with KUSI on Tuesday.

Hunter said he was pleading guilty to prevent the trial from going public due to family reasons.

According to the indictment, the allegations claim that he and his wife, Margaret, "knowingly conspired with each other" to convert campaign funds "for their own personal benefit and enjoyment."

Margaret, who was the campaign chairwoman, already pleaded guilty and consented to testifying against Hunter.

Prosecutors also alleged the two denigrated the military and masked their personal spending under the guise of gifts for wounded veterans. During a trip to Hawaii in 2015, Hunter, a former US Marine officer, allegedly told Margaret he planned "to buy my Hawaii shorts" but had run out of money. Margaret advised him to buy the shorts at a golfing gear shop so they could later describe the sale as "some [golf] balls for the wounded warriors," the indictment said.

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