Jim Desmond moves to run for a different seat in Congress — Darrell Issa’s

San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond appears to be mounting a run for the seat in Congress held by fellow Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, raising new uncertainty about Issa’s political future and potentially remaking a race made newly competitive by Democrat-led redistricting.

Desmond has withdrawn from the race for a neighboring congressional district represented by Democratic Rep. Mike Levin, a race the Republican supervisor has been running in for more than a year, according to election officials.

According to the county Registrar of Voters, Desmond pulled nomination papers on Thursday to run in the 48th Congressional District, the seat currently held by Issa, indicating an interest in running for the office. Issa also pulled nomination papers in recent days, a key preliminary step.

By midday Friday, neither had formally filed to enter the race.

Friday is the deadline for incumbents to file nomination forms with the registrar. But there’s a five-day extension for other candidates to file in any races where the incumbent hasn’t filed.

Desmond, who’s served on the Board of Supervisors since 2018 and faces term limits, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The late switch from Desmond, just before a Friday deadline, comes after months of uncertainty about whether Issa planned to stay in the race.

When asked for comment via text message Friday, Issa replied: “Don’t owe you anything nothing no.”

With Ca...