diff --git a/scripts/admin/merge_candidates_no_knn.py b/scripts/admin/merge_candidates_no_knn.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1378abf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/admin/merge_candidates_no_knn.py
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+import json
+
+# Injected vars: text_candidates, seed_ref_id
+
+def _parse_list(val):
+    """Parse input to a list, handling JSON strings and None gracefully."""
+    if val is None:
+        return []
+    if isinstance(val, list):
+        return val
+    if isinstance(val, str):
+        stripped = val.strip()
+        if not stripped or stripped in ('null', 'None', '[]', ''):
+            return []
+        try:
+            parsed = json.loads(stripped)
+            return parsed if isinstance(parsed, list) else []
+        except (ValueError, TypeError):
+            return []
+    return []
+
+text_list = _parse_list(text_candidates)
+
+seed = str(seed_ref_id).strip() if seed_ref_id else ''
+
+# Deduplicate by ref_id, excluding the seed node itself
+seen_refs = set()
+merged = []
+for item in text_list:
+    if not isinstance(item, dict):
+        continue
+    ref = str(item.get('ref_id', '')).strip()
+    if not ref or ref == seed or ref in seen_refs:
+        continue
+    seen_refs.add(ref)
+    merged.append(item)
+
+print("merged_candidates: {}".format(json.dumps(merged)))