Andres Salomon, one of the first candidates to challenge Mayor Ed Murray's re-election, says he's dropping out of the race because he'd rather support Cary Moon or Mike McGinn than run against them.

Salomon, an Ecuadorian immigrant, safe streets advocate, and software developer, says in a statement today that while some people warned him against challenging Murray, others were supportive. "Two of those supportive people are now candidates in the race—Cary Moon and Mike McGinn," Salomon says. "I believe both would make excellent mayors... The last thing I would want do is split the vote with others who share my values."

Salomon's statement also gives a clue of just how long McGinn, the former mayor who launched what appeared to be a thrown-together campaign Monday, has been considering a run.

Back in January of this year, my wife and I met with McGinn after dropping my son off at preschool. We took a walk around Green Lake and talked about whether I should run. He was incredibly generous with his time and frank about the realities of running and holding office, but also optimistic and full of enthusiasm. It was clear how much he loved being Mayor. As the walk concluded, I asked if I could send him my website and platform for his feedback. He paused, and told me that he couldn’t do that in good conscience. He explained that he was thinking about running. I like to think that my compelling speech about how badly the city was being run was what made him think about running. Even if that’s not true, please don’t ruin it for me.

We kept in touch. He would email me an idea for my campaign, or I’d call him for advice. He did this for free, which I was hugely appreciative of. When the Murray scandal broke, I emailed him but there was no response. I knew that meant McGinn was in. I was happy to hear the official announcement.

Tonight, Murray, McGinn, Moon, Nikkita Oliver, and others will appear together for the first time at a forum in North Seattle.