Term limits may sit well with the voters, but right now they are causing problems for state Senator Kevin Parker.

Two of 35 council members being forced out by term limits in 2009, Simcha Felder and Kendall Stewart, are running in the Democratic primary tomorrow for Mr. Parker’s Brooklyn seat in the 21st District, which includes parts of Borough Park, Kensington, and Flatbush.

The race is one of several competitive state and congressional primaries taking place as New York City’s voters go to the polls to choose who will represent their party in the November elections. Turnout is expected to be higher than in last year’s primaries, few of which were competitive.

Mr. Parker derided his primary opponents in a recent interview as “two guys who are about to lose their job.”

“They both represent ambition without accomplishment,” he said.

For Mr. Parker, the timing of the challenge could not be much worse. After five-plus years in the Republican-controlled state Senate, he is finally poised to join his Democratic colleagues in retaking the majority and controlling the agenda in Albany for the first time in more than a decade. Being in the majority would cut both ways, however, as his Senate seat would be more attractive for challengers.

Mr. Parker’s opponents are both well-established figures in the area with a strong base in their communities. Mr. Felder is an Orthodox Jew and Mr. Stewart is a Caribbean immigrant, while Mr. Parker is African-American.

Race has been an open issue in the campaign — the district is about 60% black, 22% white, and 10% Hispanic, according to census data — and Mr. Stewart has accused Mr. Felder, who reportedly has raised about $1 million in campaign funds versus about $400,000 for Mr. Parker and less than $100,000 for Mr. Stewart, of trying to “buy” the support of the Caribbean community. At a recent debate, Mr. Felder pointed out to the audience that Mr. Stewart, who immigrated to New York when he was 21, had spent fewer years in Brooklyn than he and Mr. Parker, who were born there.

While his opponents pursued careers in finance and medicine before eventually turning to politics, Mr. Parker is a political lifer who holds a degree in public policy.

He points to the Senate’s success in approving the budget on time in recent years as his proudest accomplishment, but his activities away from the Senate have provided the strongest opening for his opponents: namely, his history of missed votes and his 2005 arrest for allegedly punching a traffic agent. Although the charges were dropped, his opponents have pressed the issue in interviews, debates, and campaign mailers. At a recent debate, Mr. Stewart also went after Mr. Parker for having missed 323 votes in the Senate last year, which Mr. Parker attributed to a death in the family that required his help at home.

“We are in need of a senator because we don’t have the one who is supposed to be there,” Mr. Stewart told The New York Sun.

Mr. Stewart, who practiced podiatry in Brooklyn before winning an open City Council seat against Mr. Parker in 2001, is weighed down with his own legal scandal. Two of his aides were arrested earlier this year and indicted on charges that they used the council member’s office to direct taxpayer money to a charity they operated and then embezzled the funds. Mr. Stewart says he believes the case is a misunderstanding over paperwork.

Mr. Felder’s efforts have been boosted by an endorsement from Mayor Bloomberg, though the mayor’s support also has opened him up to attacks from his rivals, who argue that Mr. Felder cannot be trusted to advance a progressive agenda while accepting support from Mr. Bloomberg, who has donated $500,000 to Republican state Senate candidates. Mr. Felder’s ties to the mayor also have been a boon for his district — he received $2 million last year from Mr. Bloomberg’s discretionary fund, more than any other city official.

While critics look askance at pork spending, Mr. Felder has put his record of outmaneuvering colleagues for city resources at the center of his campaign, pledging to be the “greatest schnorrer in my community” if elected.

“I love slush and I love every flavor of it,” Mr. Felder said in a recent interview. “I don’t feel that it’s bad in any way. It’s about trying to help community organizations that help people in need.”

In addition to the 21st District, competitive primaries are taking place in several other districts tomorrow. One of the most powerful figures in New York State government, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, faces two opponents: a Lower Manhattan attorney, Luke Henry, and a community organizer, Paul Newell.

State Senator Martin Connor, a 30-year veteran of the state Legislature who represents parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan, is being challenged by a well-funded insurgent, Daniel Squadron. Mr. Squadron, 28, a former aide to Senator Schumer, has collected a string of high-profile endorsements over the last month, including those of Mr. Bloomberg, the president of Manhattan, Scott Stringer, and the New York Times, raising expectations about his performance tomorrow. Council Member Miguel Martinez is challenging another Bloomberg-endorsed candidate, Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat, for his Upper Manhattan seat.

In Staten Island, there are races on the Republican and Democratic side to try to succeed Rep. Vito Fossella, who dropped out after a drunken-driving arrest and admissions that he had fathered a child outside his marriage. Among the Democrats, Council Member Michael McMahon is running against an attorney, Stephen Harrison. Dr. Jim Wyne, who runs a private medical office, and a former assemblyman, Robert Straniere, are competing among the Republicans.

In Brooklyn, a 25-year incumbent, Rep. Edolphus Towns, is being challenged by a political activist and former reality television personality, Kevin Powell, 42.