Mayor Jim Righeimer’s edge on opponent Jay Humphrey widened Thursday afternoon in the closely-watched Costa Mesa City Council race.

With the county Registrar of Voters’ 5 p.m. update, Righeimer’s lead grew from 18 votes to 112.

That’s a margin of 0.4 percent of votes cast in the council race.

At stake is control over city government, with Righeimer’s seat being the tipping point of the three-member council majority, which has sought to outsource numerous city services in recent years.

A recount is possible if a small vote margin separates the candidates when the results are certified, which is expected to take place late next week.

Updated vote tallies are posted at 5 p.m. by the Registrar of Voters at this webpage.

You can reach Nick Gerda at ngerda@gmail.com, and follow him on Twitter: @nicholasgerda.

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