LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Lincoln Police Union has decided to help Mayor Chris Beutler (BYTE’-lur) pay his campaign debt, although the union backed the mayor’s opponent in the 2015 election.

The union supported Lancaster County Treasurer Andy Stebbing in May instead of Beutler, who won his third term.

Union president Chris Milisits said Wednesday the $13,500 donation is a gesture of support to bolster a working relationship. He called it “a sign of civility.”

The union liked Stebbing’s campaign promise to hire more officers, a proposal that Beutler criticized as a waste of money when crime and calls for service were down.

Stebbing is a Republican and a former law enforcement officer. Beutler is a Democrat.