After less than a week in the running, Chris Jordan has dropped out of the New Iberia mayoral race. As a result, Mayor Hilda Curry will be re-elected without opposition.

“The more I thought about it,” said Jordan, “I really like what I do. I got a great job, and it’s just hard for me to leave it for four years. That’s really it. ... My everyday job is probably better than most people’s vacations.”

Jordan said he slept on it over the weekend, and the more he thought about it, the more he realized what he’d be giving up “... and the city’s in pretty good hands right now,” he said.

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“Could I have made some changes? Absolutely. Would I have made some changes? Yes. But right now, that’s not really my career path.”

Curry said she felt “very confident that I would get back in, but now I won’t have the distraction of the campaign and can stay focused on city business, which is wonderful.

“It feels great. ... I feel very fortunate to serve the citizens of New Iberia for another four years.”

Curry said Jordan came to visit her about 2 p.m. Monday.

“We had a very nice visit,” she said. “In the final analysis, I think he felt that this administration was doing a good job.”

Jordan agreed.

“I can’t see anything negative about the current administration,” he said. “I think I coulda done a real good job for the city, but (Curry) and I weren’t that far apart.”

Jordan said their meeting was good, and that Curry was “gonna work on what she needs to do to help grow New Iberia, and I’m gonna do what I do best.”

Jordan owns Vermilion Holdings and is a New Iberia- based developer.

Curry said she invited Jordan to come and work with the city on a volunteer basis, such as on boards and commissions.

Jordan said in a press release issued Monday “I will do everything possible to assist the current mayor in helping New Iberia achieve a higher level of success.”

He said right now he already serves on five boards and if he joined another with the city it would most likely have to do with economic growth.

Curry said though she will no longer be going door to door campaigning, she is planning events for sometime in August to celebrate, thank people for their support, meet area residents and talk about “whatever they’re interested in,” both “things that they feel we’re doing properly and issues they’re concerned about.”

She said that though the events are not yet planned, there will be one per district.

Jordan is the second candidate in less than a week to exit one of the top two races in the city after qualifying, leaving the incumbent unchallenged. Dan Doerle exited the race for mayor pro tem last Thursday. When no one qualified Friday, mayor pro tem Freddie DeCourt was re-elected by default. DeCourt will enter his second of two maximum consecutive terms.

Curry, re-elected after Jordan withdrew, will enter her second of three maximum consecutive terms in office.