In the Pelham Parkway section of the Bronx, there are City Council campaign signs tacked in windows of bakeries and restaurants. On Manhattan’s East Side, candidates are making their case for election to voters at subway stops.

Although most council races in the city are decided in fierce Democratic primaries where the winner emerges as a shoo-in for office, this year Republicans have waged competitive general election races and have a shot of picking up several seats on November 8.

On the East Side, Democrats Daniel Garodnick and Jessica Lappin, first-time candidates, face Republicans Patrick Murphy and Dr. Joel Zinberg, respectively. In the Bronx, James Vacca, a Democrat and former community board district manager, won the primary, but he now faces Philip Foglia, a former prosecutor who worked with Mayor Giuliani and now has his endorsement.

In the Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights section of Brooklyn, Vincent Gentile, a Democrat, is fighting to hold onto his seat as Pasqualino (Pat) Russo, his Republican challenger, makes inroads in his district. The lawn sign war in that district was the subject of an article in The New York Sun last month. Mr. Russo, who lost to Mr. Gentile by 10 percentage points four years ago, seemed to be ahead.

“The reality in the City Council is but for the Republicans there would not be debate and dialogue,” the body’s minority leader, James Oddo, said. “The overwhelming majority of the council espouses the same political philosophy. It falls on the three Republicans to give voice to the other side.”

Mr. Foglia, a Democrat until about 10 years ago, said party registration favors Democrats by 3 to 1 in his district but that his message was resonating at senior centers and other stops he has made on the campaign trail.

“A two-party system keeps each party honest,” he said yesterday. “And, frankly, the Bronx has always had a corruption problem. I know because I led the corruption investigation from the D.A.’s office in the ’80s with Rudy Giuliani.”

Mayor Bloomberg has endorsed these four fellow Republicans, the most competitive of the crop running for the council. And many in the party are hoping the candidates will benefit from having his name at the top of their ticket, especially if public opinion polls are right and the mayor beats his Democratic opponent, Fernando Ferrer, in a blowout.

Mr. Oddo, the minority leader, said if the three Republicans in the 51-member council add any more members to their delegation they could have some influence in determining the next City Council speaker. The scenario would require not just more Republicans, but also a crowded field of candidates and a body divided among them.

A former council member from Queens, Walter McCaffrey, said, however, it was a “pipe dream” to think that council Republicans would ever truly be in a position to influence policy.

“Debate without any effect is for all intents and purposes useless,” he said. “It’s a rhetorical exercise of the vocal chords without any substantial political change as a result.”

Mr. McCaffrey, a Democrat, said he experienced the council when it had only one Republican, Susan Molinari, and when it had six at its Republican peak. He said while he respected the Republicans he worked with, it would take 16 or 17 of them to sway votes.

Though the Upper East Side has two Democrats on their way out – the council speaker, Gifford Miller, and the chairwoman of the education committee, Eva Moskowitz – Republicans have historically held those seats. Dr. Zinberg, a surgeon, said that alone makes it impossible to count him out.

Mr. Murphy, a former president of the Log Cabin Republicans, said anyone who considers his opponent, Mr. Garodnick, the favorite, is out of touch with the demographics in the district.

“This district has the independent minded voters in the New York City,” Mr. Murphy. “You’ve seen it again and again with Republicans crossing lines to vote for Democrats and Democrats crossing lines to vote for Republicans. So it absolutely is a wide-open race.”

Mr. Gardonick said he was campaigning hard, and that the district would be better served by a Democrat.