NATCHEZ — The race was tight and the lead went back and forth for nearly an hour after the polls closed, but Arthur Lewis came out on top.

By 39 votes, Lewis won the election for Vidalia police chief against opponent Todd Ainsworth in a 51 percent to 49 percent photo finish.

Lewis — a Democrat who won a special election for the seat in April 2011, after serving as chief on an interim basis for five months — had 869 votes with all four precincts in Vidalia reporting. Ainsworth had 830 votes.

Lewis said he was understandably “anxious” watching the results come in Saturday night.

“But I had faith we were going to win,” he said.

Ainsworth said he expected the race to be close before the polls opened, and even when election returns showed he was up 60 percent with two of four precincts reporting, he knew it was going to be a close call.

“I want to thank everybody that did come out and vote for me,” Ainsworth said.

“And for the other half of town, they can’t complain because they didn’t get out and vote.”

Unofficial voter turnout was 49.6 percent, according to the Secretary of State’s website.

Ainsworth said it was his first time running for office, and he won’t regret how much he learned and the people he met on the campaign trail.

“It was a great experience,” he said. “The sheriff (Randy Maxwell) told me it would be interesting, and it was.”

Ainsworth, who resigned as a lieutenant from the Concordia Parish Sheriffs Office to run for the Vidalia chief position, said he will be back at work serving the parish at the sheriff’s office as early as next week.

Lewis said he will work to serve everyone in Vidalia — even those who didn’t support him Saturday — and is committed to being fair to all citizens of Vidalia.

“I wish 49 percent who didn’t vote for me will realize I’m a policeman, a law enforcement officer. (The election) wasn’t about my ego,” Lewis said.

“All I wanted my whole life since I was little was to be a policeman so I could help people.”

Despite coming so close and missing it, Ainsworth said he wanted to congratulate Lewis on the win.

“I think we both ran a clean race, there’s no hard feelings,” Ainsworth said. “And we’ll continue to work together from the sheriff’s office to the police department.”

Lewis said he wanted to thank God and the people of Vidalia for putting their confidence in him and trusting him and the Vidalia Police Department.

The total number of votes cast in the Vidalia police chief’s race was 1,699

In other Vidalia races:

The District 1 alderman race will head to a run-off after incumbent “Tron” McCoy was unable to obtain a majority.

In fact, only two votes separated McCoy, a Democrat, from challenger Frank Duson, a Democrat.

McCoy received 167 votes, or 44.53 percent; Duson captured 165 votes or 44.0 percent.

Audrey Johnson Gray, a Democrat, had 43 votes, 11 percent.

District 2 Alderman Vernon Stevens, a Democrat, handily defeated his challenger, Randy Young, a Democrat, and will retain his seat on the board. Stevens received 229 votes or 78.69 percent to Young’s 62 votes and 21.31 percent.

Aldermen in Districts 3-5 ran unopposed.