NEWPORT -- A licensing complaint against Nokomis High School guidance counselor Don Mendell about his appearance in a TV commercial opposing gay marriage has sparked a political fight as voters go to the polls.

The complaint was filed by Ann Sullivan, a social worker at Newport Elementary School, according to the Yes on 1 campaign, which supports the effort to repeal the state's same-sex marriage law in today's referendum vote, and the Alliance Defense Fund, whose lawyers now represent Mendell.

Messages left for Sullivan on Monday at Newport Elementary School were not returned.

The Morning Sentinel obtained the complaint last week. It has been filed with the state Department of Professional and Financial Regulation.

Supporters of Question 1 have pounced on the complaint as an illustration of how they believe the law will affect school systems. Scott Fish, spokesman for the Yes on 1 campaign, said he recently spoke with Mendell, who has worked at Nokomis for decades.

"He doesn't really know Ann Sullivan," Fish said. "What Sullivan's complaint is really saying is, it's OK for school counselors to have one viewpoint of marriage. If the opinion is, marriage should be between one man and one woman, then, according to the complaint, you shouldn't be a counselor. That's a chilling thing and also sends a real warning to anybody in Maine."

Yes on 1 released a new radio advertisement Monday drawing attention to the complaint, calling it "the latest -- and most unconscionable -- example of how those in power in Maine schools will push homosexual marriage on students."

The ad says: "Don't be fooled. If Question 1 fails and homosexual marriage is legalized, those in power in Maine schools will push it on students just as they are trying to punish one of Maine's best educators for supporting traditional marriage."

Mark Sullivan, spokesman for No on 1, says his group has no connection with the complaint and that "we support everyone's right to free speech, even speech we disagree with.

"And we certainly don't believe anyone's job should be threatened for exercising that right," Sullivan said. "We also support the rights of the Catholic Church, which recently stripped a Lewiston woman of her lay ministry for supporting marriage equality" in a newspaper column.

Still, Sullivan criticized Yes on 1's handling of the licensing complaint, which was filed Oct. 19 and sent to Mendell Oct. 23.

"It's clear that the Yes campaign purposely sat on an unfortunate incident involving their supporter until the final days. They are heavily into conspiracy theories, all to boost their false claims about schools that have been rejected by the attorney general, the commissioner of education and newspapers across the state," Sullivan said.

The disclosure of the complainant's name highlights how the Newport-based school system has become a flashpoint in the same-sex marriage debate. Mendell appeared in a commercial in support of Question 1 after Nokomis High literacy coach Sherri Gould first appeared in a commercial as the 2005 Teacher of the Year, in opposition to the repeal effort.

Gould said in an interview that her part in the commercial was filmed inside a Nokomis classroom, with permission from top school district officials.

Citing Mendell's opinion as expressed in the TV commercial, the complaint seeks to revoke Mendell's license because "he does not have the right as a licensed social worker to make public comments that can endanger or promote discrimination."

The complaint cites a code of ethics set by the National Association of Social Workers. The cited sections state that social workers should "treat colleagues with respect and ... should avoid unwarranted negative criticism of colleagues in communications" and they "should not practice, condone, facilitate, or collaborate with any form of discrimination" on the basis of several factors, including "sexual orientation."

In the commercial, Mendell describes Gould as a "gay activist" and says repealing the law will "prevent homosexual marriage from being pushed on Maine students." Mendell later said in an interview that he wanted people to know "at least one experienced educator, counselor, thought at stake here was something that would have a profound effect on the raising of children," because children should have equal opportunities to be raised by a mother and father, if possible, he said.

Contacted on Monday, Mendell again declined to comment and referred questions to his lawyers at the Alliance Defense Fund, which specializes in a "legal defense and advocacy of religious freedom," according to its Web site.

Austin R. Nimocks, senior legal counsel for the firm, said a response to the complaint would not be filed this week.

Arnold Shorey, assistant superintendent of the Regional School Unit 19 system, said school officials continue to receive phone calls "from both sides" about the matter and reiterated the school district's acknowledgment of each employee's right to free speech.

"There is no district involvement in the complaint at all," Shorey said, saying that the complaint has not been addressed by school officials.

Scott Monroe -- 861-9253

smonroe@centralmaine.com