City Council members will probably try extending their two-term limit by a third four-year term, but some members aren’t taking any chances and are already plotting their next political moves in case they can’t run again in 2009.

Less than six months after starting their second terms, council members are meeting with supporters and actively raising funds in anticipation of what observers say could be a wide-open scramble for the city’s top elected positions three years from now.

Term limits are the clear impetus behind this flurry of ambition. Thirty-seven members won election to a second full term last November, and each one will have nowhere to go but up or out in three and a half years. Adding to the intrigue is that four of the five borough presidencies will be vacated by term limits in 2009, as will the positions of public advocate, comptroller, and, of course, mayor. (Of the elected positions, only district attorney is not subject to term limits, as evidenced most notably by the Manhattan D.A., Robert Morgenthau, who has held the office since 1974.)

Many lawmakers favor altering the rules to allow a third term, and some want to repeal the limitations entirely. Although term limits were established by voters in a referendum, some council members want to eliminate or alter the limits by a simple council vote. Mayor Bloomberg has called that idea “disgraceful” because New Yorkers voted in favor of term limits twice, in 1993 and 1996.

While the early start to the campaign season draws concern from government watchdogs and even some legislators who worry that it will lead to an every-member-for-himself atmosphere at City Hall, council members angling for electoral promotions make no apologies.

“The need to raise funds in this business is critical,” the council’s deputy majority leader, Leroy Comrie, said. “I’m told it’s never too early.”

Mr. Comrie, a Democrat representing southeast Queens, said he held a fund-raiser in February that took in about $8,000, and he plans to host a larger event later this month in anticipation of a run for higher office. He said he’s been approached about running for the presidency of Queens. “It’s flattering, but I haven’t looked at anything,” is Mr. Comrie’s response.

Many of his colleagues similarly scoff at suggestions they are mulling particular 2009 races. With a verbal wink and nod, they insist they are truly keeping their options open.

The chairman of the council’s Finance Committee, David Weprin, isn’t so coy. He all but declared a run for city comptroller. “I have no interest in any other office,” Mr. Weprin said. A former state deputy banking commissioner, the Queens Democrat said he had more than $500,000 left over from last year’s re-election run that he raised another $300,000 at a South Street Seaport fund-raiser celebrating his 50th birthday last month.

A fellow Queens Democrat, Anthony Avella, has set his sights even higher – he says he is running for mayor. A frequent critic of his colleagues, Mr. Avella is known as a maverick in the council. With the city comptroller, William Thompson Jr., the Bronx borough president, Adolfo Carrion, and Rep. Anthony Weiner all possible competitors, Mr. Avella concedes he’s a long shot.

“Yeah, what are my chances? Slim to none,” he said. Mr. Avella, who represents Bayside, has considered a mayoral campaign before and said he decided to go for it in 2009 after declining overtures from party officials to run for the state Legislature this year.

Two other Queens legislators, Eric Gioia and Melinda Katz, have been among the council’s most aggressive fund-raisers and are clearly eyeing 2009 runs for citywide office. Mr. Gioia is most often linked with a bid for public advocate, while Ms. Katz, who heads the council’s powerful Land Use Committee, could challenge Mr. Weprin for comptroller or seek the Queens borough presidency.

Mr. Gioia is holding a series of fund raising “parties,” including one last month to celebrate his 33rd birthday. The events, he said, are designed to open up the political process to a younger generation, and unlike traditional $500 or $1,000 required donations, Mr. Gioia said he accepts any contribution to attend.

The first fund-raising barometer will come on July 17, the initial financial reporting deadline for 2009 citywide races.

Some ambitious council members aren’t waiting until the next citywide election. Three Brooklyn legislators – David Yassky, Yvette Clarke, and Charles Barron – are running for Congress this year. A Republican council member of Staten Island, Andrew Lanza, is seeking a state Senate seat, and a Queens Democrat, Hiram Monserrate, announced this week that he will challenge fellow Democrat John Sabini for his Senate seat.

Political analysts say the atmosphere of a “permanent campaign” fostered by term limits hinders any effort to create consensus within the chamber.

“Every council member is a potential opponent of every other council member,” a Democrat of Queens, Peter Vallone Jr., said. Mr. Vallone is widely seen as a contender for Queens district attorney in 2009, if Richard Brown does not seek another term. A former city prosecutor and the chairman of the council’s Public Safety Committee, Mr. Vallone has drawn citywide attention for his aggressive targeting of graffiti vandalism and his support of video surveillance for police officers. He said he took in $235,000 at a fundraiser earlier this year at the club Lotus in Manhattan and plans to have another event this fall.

The council’s majority leader, Joel Rivera, a potential contender to re place Mr. Carrion as the Bronx president, said he saw little conflict between doing his job in the council and preparing for a future race. “You always hear the old adage, ‘Can you walk and chew gum at the same time?’ Well I believe I can,” Mr. Rivera said.

The fact that council members feel compelled to jump into campaign mode so soon after reelection is “unfortunate,” Richard Dadey, the executive director of the good government group Citizens Union, said. “Having council members who are looking at their next office does not serve the interests of the public three and a half years before the next city election,” Mr. Dadey said. “Unfortunately, the decisions that they make as council members need to be seen through the prism of their maneuvering” for a future run.