A day after finishing third in Apopka’s mayoral election, incumbent Mayor Bryan Nelson is dropping his lawsuit challenging the residency of Orange County Commissioner Christine Moore.

Nelson’s attorney, Mark Herron, said he would file motion to dismiss with prejudice on Wednesday.

“I wanted her to be in play for the mayor’s election, so I have withdrawn the lawsuit and will probably talk about an endorsement, but no promises either way,” Nelson said in a phone interview with The Apopka Chief. He said he plans to talk with Moore before making an endorsement decision, specifically citing some of the city’s “great employees” he has heard are “on the chopping block” under new leadership at City Hall.

On Tuesday, Apopka City Commissioner Nick Nesta finished first in the three-way race for mayor, capturing almost 42% of the vote. Moore came in second with almost 32%, while Nelson claimed just under 27%. Since no candidate reached 50%, a runoff between Nesta and Moore is scheduled for April 14.

Moore said she was “relieved” to hear the news.

“I’m pretty happy because I followed all the rules and did everything I could to be qualified to run for office,” Moore said in a Wednesday phone interview. “I’ve lived in Apopka since 1988, but I had to move into the city to run for mayor.”

Moore said she is not concerned that someone else could challenge her residency.

Nelson said another suit would be unlikely, given the tight timeline.

“You’d have to file the whole thing, and by the time you got it through the court system, it would take months and months,” he said. “It wouldn’t be fair to the general public.”

Nelson filed the suit in January, accusing Moore of renting a room in the city limits while continuing to live at her home in unincorporated Orange County for months. He produced dozens of photographs allegedly showing her vehicle at the home between April and July 2025, noting the Apopka City Charter requires mayoral candidates to reside within city limits for one year prior to taking office.

In February, Moore filed a motion to dismiss the suit, saying the challenge was “unripe” for consideration when she was only a candidate and not actually the sitting mayor. The motion called the suit “nothing more than an attempt to circumvent the will of the voters by weaponizing the judicial process.”