Greenville Mayor Clifford Harriger unofficially defeated challenger Carmen Surano by 99 votes Tuesday night in the most heated mayoral race in borough memory.

Harriger, 75, of 50 Columbia Ave., is completing his second term as mayor.

Harriger said he wants to help see the borough's $5.5 million recreation and revitalization project through to completion during his next term.

Harriger waited for the results at Mercer County Republican Headquarters in Mercer, which was connected to running elections totals on the county Web site and to the courthouse assembly room across the street via walkie-talkie.

The headquarters erupted when the winning numbers came in at 9:45 p.m. It was Harriger, 718, and Surano, 619. Based on those numbers, 43 percent of the borough's voters turned out for the race.

Harriger had been trailing by 60 votes since the first borough tallies -- including votes from the West Side -- were reported 25 minutes earlier.

"Let's get back to work," Harriger said emphatically.

Harriger, who has run uncontested in his past two elections, said he expected this year's race to be as close as 50 votes. "I've learned that it's profitable to persevere," he said.

Surano, 69, of 111 N. Second St., unofficially began his campaign for mayor in December 1999. That month Harriger signed off on the first of two 10-mill tax increases to pay off a bond issue earmarked for the local share of the recreation and revitalization project.

The Committee of Concerned Taxpayers, of which the Democrat Surano became de facto leader, formed soon after and sent out thousands of surveys regarding the increases and the projects. Of the hundreds who responded, most said they opposed both.

"If we accomplished anything, we got more people out to vote and we got more people interested," Surano said.

Surano said he does not plan to seek office in the future.