The field of candidates has become a little less crowded for Jefferson City elected offices.
On Thursday morning, Stu Murphy removed his name from the race to fill 5th Ward City Councilman Ron Medin's vacant seat.
With Murphy's departure from the race, the only other candidate for the 5th Ward position is Ralph Bray.
Murphy said his reason for leaving the race was not because of any particular commitment that took precedence in his priorities, but rather because of the similarities between him and his former opponent.
"It's a situation whereby I think we have two very good competent, capable and committed candidates for only the one seat," Murphy said. "Ralph and I had spoken a couple of times and we really, ultimately share the same outlook for the 5th Ward. Our platform issues are primarily the same, including historic preservation and code enforcement, neighborhood revitalization.
"It just seemed to be the better thing for me to do to cooperate, as opposed to compete with Ralph. Frankly, I think I would be just as good of a candidate but, in all honesty, Ralph would be a much better council person."
Murphy added that his main reason for filing in the first place was that a significant amount of time had passed and no one from the 5th Ward had filed, prompting him to add his name to the ballot. But he said that with Bray also on the ballot, he felt comfortable with his decision to withdraw from the race.
"I'm behind him (Bray) 100 percent and I mentioned this to him when I chatted with him a couple of days ago after giving it great thought, and I just think the best thing for us to do is just have one candidate for the 5th (Ward)."
Similarly, Murphy's withdrawal means the only contested City Council seat is in the 1st Ward, where incumbent councilman Bob Weber is challenged by Tyler Woods.
There is still time for the challengers to toss their hats into the ring for all elected city positions. Filing for all offices ends at 5 p.m. Tuesday.