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ST. LOUIS — A lawsuit that could have effectively decided the race for 14th Ward alderman is now moot.

State Rep. Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis, on Friday asked a judge to remove from the April 4 ballot his 14th Ward opponent, realtor Ebony Washington, because she had not declared or paid taxes on any real or personal property for several years. The city charter requires a candidate for alderman to be an “assessed taxpayer of the city” for at least two years prior to their election.

The challenge threatened to clear the field in the new 14th Ward, where the next alderman will represent part of downtown and assets like the new soccer stadium, as well as poorer neighborhoods that have struggled with disinvestment, vacancy and crime.

But Washington, a member of the politically influential Hubbard family, settled up Monday. City records show she conceded she owned a 2018 Toyota Camry sedan in the city in 2020 and 2021, and paid the resulting tax bills. She also said she did not own a vehicle on Jan. 1, 2022, and received a waiver for that year.

And on Tuesday afternoon, Sam Gladney, an attorney for Aldridge, said he had withdrawn the lawsuit.

Aldridge said he was glad to see his opponent following the law. “She should have been doing so all along,” he said.

Washington declined comment on the lawsuit Tuesday.

Aldridge also paid a late personal property tax bill this week. He owed on a 2010 Nissan Maxima sedan for 2022. He said he did not receive his bill in the fall and paid up as soon as he learned of the deficit.

City officials are supposed to make sure candidates are not delinquent on city taxes before they file. But Aldridge was current when he filed for office in December, having previously paid for 2020 and 2021. Taxes for 2022 were not overdue until Jan. 1.