Anthony Emanuel is the mayor of Trenton, Ga.

TRENTON, Ga. - Voters here chose Anthony Emanuel as their next mayor in a not-so-close race that featured experienced political candidates.

Emanuel, a former mayor of the city, beat incumbent Barton Harris and Tommy Lowery to win a four-year term.

"We took our campaign to the people," Emanuel said. "We laid the real challenge to them: new and better jobs and a balanced budget."

Three hundred and nine ballots were cast. Emanuel won with 150 votes, while Harris and Lowery received 83 and 76 votes respectively.

Emanuel served as mayor from 2003 until 2008 when he unsuccessfully ran for the Dade County executive seat. Harris was elected in 2008 after Emanuel stepped down.

During the campaign, the candidates focused on what to do with the city's budget.

Harris said the budget already is lean. Employees have not received raises, and most departments have cut costs.

But Emanuel and Lowery argued that the city needs to cut its budget.

After the April 27 tornadoes, Trenton officials had to shift money from a sewer fund to cover operating expenses while they and the county wait for federal reimbursement.

Before the tornadoes, Trenton had suffered an economic loss when Shaw Industries shut down a carpet factory three years ago, which meant 400 people lost their jobs.

Emanuel said he'll need to look at personnel costs to find ways to cut the budget.

The new mayor will earn $7,200 in 2012.