CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Incumbent Republican Barbara Cubin appears to have narrowly avoided an automatic recount in her race against businessman Gary Trauner, according to preliminary results of Tuesday's election.

The Associated Press still considered the race too close to call and was waiting for official results; results will become official after the State Canvassing Board meeds Nov. 15.

But unofficial returns compiled by the Secretary of State's office Wednesday morning had Cubin with 93,197 votes, or 48.3 percent, Trauner with 92,227 votes, 47.8 percent. Libertarian Thomas Rankin had 7,465 votes, or 3.9 percent.

If the results stand, Cubin would win a seventh two-year term, and the 970 vote spread between her and Trauner would not trigger an automatic recount by the state. The vote spread would have to be no more than 931 for an automatic recount to take place.

Cubin's spokesman Joe Milczewski said Cubin wasn't immediately available Wednesday morning. Attempts by The Associated Press to reach Trauner and his spokeswoman by phone were unsuccessful.

Wyoming's 23 counties have until Friday to canvass their results before they are passed on to the State Canvassing Board, state election director Peggy Nighswonger said.

"Usually those numbers don't change but they could," she said.

Nighswonger said any candidate race can request a recount if there is no automatic recount.

No requests for a recount had been received in the U.S. House race, she said.

Democrats, believing they had a strong candidate in Trauner, targeted Cubin from the outset of the campaign, and Trauner proved to be an effective campaigner despite his lack of political experience.

But Cubin has proven to be a resilient candidate in past elections, fighting off previous Democratic challengers handily.

Trauner, who co-founded and later sold an Internet provider based in Jackson, worked hard on a door-to-door campaign - he says he knocked on more than 15,000 doors - and raised enough money to run a competitive race - something that previous Democratic challengers to Cubin had trouble doing.

Cubin didn't help her cause when she got into a confrontation with Rankin after a debate on Oct. 22.

But even before the incident, Cubin herself acknowledged in a fundraising letter that she was nervous about the race against Trauner despite Wyoming's better than two-to-one advantage in registered Republicans over Democrats.