One of the announced candidates for an open DeKalb County commission seat has already withdrawn from the race — and endorsed one of his would've-been opponents.
Robert Murphy, a realtor from East Lake, was the first candidate to file a letter of intent to run for DeKalb’s Super District 6 seat, which represents the western half of the county. But on Thursday, about two weeks before the formal qualifying period, he announced he was pulling out.
“As my wife and I welcomed our son into the world last month, our lives and our priorities changed,” Murphy wrote in his announcement. “My singular focus of helping bring change to DeKalb County as commissioner was pushed aside by my responsibility to create a stable home for my newborn son.”
Murphy said he was endorsing Ted Terry in the race. Terry, the well-known mayor of Clarkston, announced his intentions to run for the commission seat after pulling out of a U.S. Senate race earlier this month.
Longtime Super District 6 Commissioner Kathie Gannon announced in January she wouldn't be seeking re-election. Gannon has endorsed another candidate in the race: community advocate Emily Halevy.
Another candidate, Maryam Ahmad, has also filed paperwork declaring intent to run for the seat.
Ahmad describes herself as “a grassroots advocate and public health worker, who is a first-generation American born and raised in DeKalb.”
"I want to focus on issues such as affordable housing, community preservation, and green energy," she wrote in a recent announcement on Instagram.
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