Yes, the mayor's race in Brookhaven, as in other municipalities, is supposed to be non-partisan. And yet the labels still matter.

One day after Brookhaven Mayor Rebecca Chase Williams, a woman of GOP tendencies, announced she was withdrawing her bid for a full term, County Commissioner Nancy Jester, a leading Republican in DeKalb, announced she was backing John Ernst in the Brookhaven mayor's race.

Ernst is a man with a Democratic background. The statement from Jester:

"I am endorsing John Ernst for Mayor of Brookhaven because his experience and leadership make him uniquely qualified to keep up the good work in DeKalb's newest city while providing the highest level of ethics, accountability, and value-added for the voters.

"With three generations of his family - his parents, his wife and him, and their two young sons - living in Brookhaven, John Ernst is fully-invested in Brookhaven's success for all its residents.

"My family's prayers are with Dick Williams, who has done so much for the citizens of Dunwoody and DeKalb County and with his wife and current Brookhaven Mayor Rebecca Chase Williams. We wish them a speedy and full recovery and look forward to seeing them both."