He was narrowly defeated for re-election in 2000 by his predecessor Jane Harman, who had relinquished her seat to run for Governor in 1998.

Kuykendall also served in the United States Marine Corps for two tours in the Vietnam War.

In the US House, Kuykendall served on the Armed Services, Science, and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committees.

His political archives were donated to the California State University, Long Beach library.

In January 2021, Kuykendall signed a letter calling on Republicans to impeach President Donald Trump after the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol.