World Photo by Lou Sennick Shortly before the start of the Coos Bay City Council meeting Tuesday evening, Mayor Jeff McKeown shakes hands with Dr. John Muenchrath. McKeown ran seeking re-election as mayor and Muenchrath, a city councilman, was running against McKeown. Both felt it would be a close election for mayor.

COOS BAY — Tuesday was a good night for incumbents and business owners seeking office in Coos Bay. Jeff McKeown retained the mayorship, while Jon Eck and Gene Melton kept their seats on the council.

Joining them on the council will be Joanie Johnson and John Pundt, replacing Michele Burnette, who didn’t seek to defend her post, and John Muenchrath, whose bid to unseat McKeown fell short.

With nearly all ballots counted, McKeown had led Muenchrath 53.5 percent to 40 percent. Fred Kirby, who withdrew from the race but remained on the ballot, had about 6 percent of the vote.

Following Tuesday night’s city council meeting, both McKeown and  Muenchrath said they hadn’t known what to expect. McKeown said he thought it would be a closer race and was surprised when the first returns came in.

“It was wider than I expected,” he said.

He said the returns were more humbling than anything else.

“Frankly, it’s been an honor to serve these past two years as mayor and the 10 years before that on the council,” McKeown said. “I’m honored to have the opportunity to serve as mayor for the next two years.”

Following the council meeting, Muenchrath said he was ready for any outcome.

“Win, lose or draw, the campaign was a great experience,” he said. “It was fun.”

McKeown received 3,135 votes. Muenchrath received 2,342, and Kirby received 350.

McKeown said he enjoyed going door to door as part of his campaign. He heard a lot of neighborhood issues, though discussions almost always returned to the economy.

He said the city needs to move ahead quickly with some of its building projects — including a new fire station, visitor center and the Hollering Place  — which would help the local construction industry.

He also said his second term as mayor would require prudence.

“The difficult economy puts on a whole different focus,” he said. “We have to be careful that we are prepared.”

Muenchrath said, though he won’t be on the council, the city should rezone the downtown area to encourage business development in ground-floor offices.

He also said he sees a silver lining in not winning the mayoral race: Tuesday nights off.