Bing Judd, who has been a Coos County Commissioner since 1997, has lost his seat by five votes.
Judd had 592 votes compared to 597 for challenger Rick Samson, deputy secretary of state David Scanlon told NHPR Thursday afternoon.
Late Thursday Judd said he will be driving to Concord Friday to file a request for a recount.
"Five votes in 1,200, there could be a mistake," he said. "It could go either way."
That recount is expected to occur Monday.
Judd had not faced a challenge for more than a decade.
There is no Democratic challenger for the seat so it belongs to Samson.
Samson, of Stewartstown, is a strong opponent of the Northern Pass hydro-electric project.
Judd, of Pittsburg, meanwhile, has only said he sees some good and some bad things about it.
The thrust of Samson’s campaign was that Judd didn’t consider the opinions of people in the North Country before making decisions.
Judd strongly denied that.
There are three Coos County Commissioners who are responsible for a budget of about $32 million a year in a county with about 33,000 residents.