Anne Arundel County Executive Janet S. Owens apparently defeated Republican challenger Phillip D. Bissett yesterday amid a backdrop of GOP victories at state and county levels.

Unofficial results showed that Owens had about 52 percent of the vote to Bissett's 48 percent. Absentee ballots had not been counted as of late last night, and Bissett said he would not concede the race until all ballots had been tallied.

"The race is going to be decided by absentee ballots," Bissett said. At midnight, he was trailing by 6,576 votes, with some 6,900 ballots yet to be counted.

Owens was cautiously optimistic at a post-election fete at the Yellow Fin restaurant in Edgewater last night.

"It has been a long hard day and it has been a wonderful four years," said Owens, a Democrat. "At least as of right now, it looks like we are going to continue what we have to do."

But Owens' husband and chief adviser, Baltimore attorney David M. Sheehan cautioned: "No one can certify this election yet."

Owens attributed her narrow lead over Bissett to a high turnout by Republican voters eager to move former Rep. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. into the governor's mansion.

Ehrlich easily carried Anne Arundel County, a swing area in the state.

"Everywhere I went today, people were talking about the governor's race," Owens said.

Owens suspected that the county could vote Republican and distanced herself from Democratic gubernatorial nominee Kathleen Kennedy Townsend during the fall campaign. Owens never formally endorsed Townsend.

Owens said she was disappointed that two council members - A. Shirley Murphy and Daniel E. Klosterman Jr., both Democrats - lost to Republican challengers.

Those defeats, plus the re-election of Republican council member Cathleen M. Vitale and the election of Republican Edward R. Reilly, switches control of the council to the GOP.

In backing Owens, 58, voters didn't appear to be bothered by perceived missteps, such as her decision to sign a development pact with the owner of the Parole Plaza near Annapolis before residents had signed off on design standards. Bissett had also charged that Sheehan meddles in local government decisions.

Bissett, 46, who works as a lobbyist in Annapolis for a company that manufactures devices that keep drunken drivers off the road, spent months doggedly attacking Owens' policies on education, law enforcement and land preservation.

The county executive race was low-key in nature, largely because Owens didn't attend neighborhood candidate forums. A spokesman for her campaign said she was too busy with county business and previously scheduled events.

Bissett complained that Owens' absence made it difficult to provide voters with a contrast. He said that his inability to raise more campaign money - as of Oct. 20 Bissett had collected $96,000 to Owens' $582,000 -prohibited him from running TV ads and sending out major mailings.

Still, Bissett said that money was not a "panacea" for political shortcomings. "Look what's happening here tonight," he said, referring to the narrowness of his opponent's lead.

In the months leading up to the election, Bissett portrayed himself as a time-tested leader whose eight-years in the General Assembly had prepared him to grapple with a looming state budget defect. Bissett was appointed to replace former Del. Aris T. Allen, after his death in 1991, and went on to win election in 1994.

Although analysts had predicted a heavy turnout by Republicans eager to support Ehrlich in his bid for governor, Bissett said that he wasn't riding the former congressman's coattails. Anne Arundel has a strong record of electing politically conservative candidates, even though Democrats outnumber Republicans.

Bissett said he expected that some residents would vote along party lines - hoping for a Republican sweep from the State House down to the local level. "That has definitely been an asset for us," Bissett said.

Some Anne Arundel residents said that they voted for Bissett because they are dissatisfied with Owens.

Riva resident Steve Alexander, 42, said he supported Bissett because the candidate is a fiscal conservative. Alexander said he's upset with the way property owners have been treated under the Owens administration. "There's just a lot of bureaucracy that you have to get through to do any work on your house," he said.

At Our Shepherd Lutheran Church in Severna Park, Karen Holloway, 41, said she voted for Bissett because she doesn't trust Owens. "She scares me," Holloway said.

Still, many more voters said they were pleased with the way Owens is managing the county. "I've been very happy with her," said Phyllis Murray, 52, of Riva. "I believe she's a real people person. She's honest and she'll do the things she says she'll do."

Severna Park resident Sharon Gratrix, 56, a Republican, said she voted for Ehrlich in the governor's race, but supported Owens in the county executive race. "She has worked hard," Gratrix said. "I like the dog parks and she seems to listen to people."

Recently, Owens has tried to shake the "nice lady" image that helped her defeat John G. Gary. Recently, she has referred to herself as "tough" and "tenacious."

Owens has said that when she moved into the county executive's fourth-floor suite at the Arundel Center in Annapolis four years ago, the county was "mired in controversy," much of which blames on Gary.

Sun staff writer Laura Loh contributed to this article.