About Duke Cunningham
Randall Harold "Duke" Cunningham (December 8, 1941 – August 27, 2025) was an American politician, Vietnam War veteran and fighter ace. A member of the Republican Party, Cunningham represented three California districts in the United States House of Representatives from 1991 to 2005, and later served prison time for accepting bribes from defense contractors. Prior to his political career, Cunningham was an officer and pilot in the United States Navy for 20 years. Following the Vietnam War, during which he became one of just two Navy aviators to be confirmed as aces, Cunningham became an instructor at the Navy's Fighter Weapons School (better known as TOPGUN) and commanding officer of Fighter Squadron 126 (VF-126), a shore-based adversary squadron at NAS Miramar, California. In 1990, Cunningham ran for the U.S. House of Representatives, defeating Democratic incumbent Jim Bates. He served in the House from 1991 to 2005, as the representative for California's 44th, 50th, and 51st congressional districts. Cunningham resigned from the House on November 28, 2005, after pleading guilty to accepting at least $2.4 million in bribes and under-reporting his taxable income for 2004. He was sentenced to eight years and four months in prison and was ordered to pay $1.8 million in restitution. On June 4, 2013, Cunningham completed his prison sentence. He was granted a conditional pardon by President Donald Trump in 2021.
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