All along, pundits said the race for Cambridge's next state representative was too close to call. They were right.

Former Cambridge mayor Alice K. Wolf edged Cambridge City Councillor Anthony D. Galluccio by 90 votes, or one percent, to win the Democratic nomination in the 27th Middlesex District yesterday.

Wolf received 3,725 votes to Galluccio's 3,635. A third challenger, Michael Cavallo, got 214. Despite a steady rainfall, approximately 44.5 percent of Cambridge's Democrats took to the polls.

Wolf thanked about 60 supporters who gathered at the Cambridge Common Restaurant, 1667 Mass. Ave.

"We won't call it a landslide campaign, but we'll call it a hard-fought and hard-won campaign. We will continue to work hard for two years at the state legislature," she said.

City Councillor and former mayor Kenneth E. Reeves '72 said Wolf's experience as a former city councillor, school committee member and IOP fellow will be valuable in the legislature.

"I think it will mean that we have sent to the statehouse a smart and gifted representative, who will work hard to improve the quality of life for citizens in Cambridge and the Commonwealth," Reeves said.

A visibly drained Galluccio, who was holding back tears, conceded the election at the North Cambridge VFW, 2103 Mass. Ave., just past 10 p.m.

"Something has been felt and everybody recognizes that it was something different. It wasn't a political feeling--it was a feeling of friendship, of neighborhood and of standing up for one another," Galluccio said in a 40-minute address before 150 supporters.

Although the two candidates' victory celebrations were at sites just five blocks apart, their ideological divide is much larger.

Wolf, 63, garnered support from the more liberal and wealthy areas of Cambridge. Galluccio, 29, drew votes from many of the same blue-collar residents who christened the careers of former U.S. House Speaker Thomas "Tip" O'Neill and state House Speaker Charles F. Flaherty.

In two posh Brattle Street wards, Wolf beat Galluccio, 1,708 to 687. Galluccio won gritty North Cambridge by a 2,184 to 1,600 margin.

But Wolf's former campaign manager, Suzanne Hammer, said Wolf will address issues facing every Cantabrigian.

"Wolf believes in justice and fairness and equity. She's knowledgeable about education, childhood and housing issues," she said.

Galluccio briefly spoke of Wolf, who is running unopposed in the Nov. 5 general election, saying "I hope with all my heart that she is a great representative. The people in the district deserve a great representative."

Cambridge Mayor Sheila Doyle Russell predicted Galluccio would make another run for political office in the future.

Wolf led throughout the night and withstood a late surge by Galluccio as ballots from North Cambridge precincts trickled in after 9 p.m.

Turnout in two Harvard University precincts was abysmal.

Only 18 of the 127 voters registered at Quincy House cast ballots, along with six of 52 in the Yard.

Wolf defeated Galluccio in the two precincts, 13 to nine. Cavallo received two votes.

Quincy House election inspector James Scanlon said Harvard's turnout was the lowest turnout on record.

Precinct warden Annie Scanlon, who brought a portable television to entertain herself, said "I've been here for [43] years, and I don't remember anything like this."

Interest around the city, however, ran high. Both candidates worked throughout the day, mobilizing voters, either through phone calls or by driving vans around the city.

Yard signs grace the entirety of Mr. Auburn Street and Mass. Ave.

Terrence Smith stood in the rain outside Quincy House, pleading with students to vote for Galluccio, his beloved neighbor.

Smith, a 1991 graduate of the Kennedy School of Government, said Galluccio's race was an uphill one.

"[Wolf] has a base of support. We ran against the Cambridge institution."

Some Galluccio backers aid they will ask for a recount, as this was the first election to use a computerized vote-tallying system