BEAUFORT -- Beaufort Mayor Bill Rauch will keep his post for four more years, according to unofficial election results that account for all but a small number of the ballots cast.

As absentee ballots for Beaufort County were tallied early into Wednesday morning and added to the votes cast at the precincts, Rauch held the lead by receiving 49 percent of the votes counted, separated from Billy Keyserling's 47 percent by 97 votes. Local businessman Peter White rounded out the field with 4 percent of the votes cast.

"In a tough race, with a lot of attention, it's nice to be re-elected," Rauch said.

Election officials at the county Board of Elections and Voter Registration Office said Wednesday that there were not enough remaining votes in the challenge and fail-safe precincts for Keyserling to mount a comeback. The results from those two precincts, which an election official said contained no more than 11 city votes, will be counted when elections are certified Friday.

"Looks like we lost," said Keyserling, who gained ground when the absentee ballots were tallied but couldn't overcome the 149-vote deficit he faced Tuesday night.

Rauch was jovial in City Hall as he recounted the race and joked about the importance of his decision to purchase a good pair of walking shoes since he campaigned on foot through most of the city.

He and Keyserling seem to have reconciled over their bruising campaign, as Rauch reported that Keyserling phoned him to offer support.

Keyserling, an area real estate agent, chose not to run for re-election for his seat on the City Council and fought for the mayor's seat instead.

Rauch said the race felt as tight as it turned out, but he owed his success largely to strong support from the Mossy Oaks area of the city.

"When we were out there on the street corner together, it felt close," said Rauch, referring to a last-ditch campaign effort he and Keyserling made at the corner of Ribaut Road and Boundary Street on Tuesday morning.

Happy with the election turnout, Rauch thinks the city can unify easily and move on, despite the sharp division of the results.

"There's only one Beaufort and only one future for Beaufort," he said, welcoming Keyserling and White supporters to share their ideas with him.

Among the challenges ahead for Rauch are the integration of a new Beaufort City Council member and paying for renovations to Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park.

City officials have been banking on money that would be raised through a 1 percent local sales tax referendum on Tuesday's ballot -- the results of which still were too close to call Wednesday -- to pay for several city building projects, including work at Waterfront, Pigeon Point and Southside parks.

Wednesday's tally of absentee ballots solidified the race for two at-large seats on Beaufort City Council.

Incumbent Gary Fordham and George O'Kelley won election to the council, earning 25 percent and 21 percent of the vote, respectively. Charlotte Brown finished in third place, trailing O'Kelley by 199 votes after the absentee votes were tallied Wednesday.

Six candidates vied for the two open City Council seats, one of which was left vacant by Keyserling's mayoral bid.