AUGUSTA -- When Sen. Deborah Simpson cast her vote in favor of same-sex marriage in May, she felt the people she represented were split on the issue.

The Auburn Democrat sensed it was an equal divide. She heard from many families who urged her to support expanding the definition of marriage to include gay couples.

"I felt even if people aren't comfortable with people being gay, people are (gay), and they should have the same rights as other citizens," she said.

But when her constituents in Auburn, Durham, Poland and New Gloucester voted last week, 55 percent voted to reject gay marriage -- even more than the statewide vote of 53 percent to 47 percent.

For Simpson, and many legislators who supported gay marriage, their votes could be used against them when they run for re-election next year, political observers say.

"Legislators spend most of their time in the State House, and they reached the conclusion that public opinion had switched in a major way, and they weren't talking to people back in their districts," said Dan Billings, a Waterville lawyer and Republican party activist.

Earlier this year, the Maine House passed the gay-marriage bill 89-57 and the Maine Senate voted 21-13. Both bodies are controlled by Democrats, although a handful of Republicans also voted in favor of same-sex marriage.

One of them, Sen. Peter Mills, R-Cornville, said although he voted in favor of the bill, he lobbied to have it sent directly to voters.

Unofficial results show that, of the 27 Somerset County jurisdictions represented by Mills, only The Forks -- by a vote of 19-14 -- voted the way he did.

Mills said if he were seeking re-election to his Senate seat, it might be a problem. But he's running for governor.

"I've survived other things," he said.

The issue landed on the ballot after a people's veto campaign led by opponents that included the Catholic church and other Christian groups. Voters showed up in surprisingly high numbers and overturned the state law after a bruising and intense campaign.

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, 299,808 voters supported repealing the law and 267,785 supported keeping it, according to unofficial results.

Arden Manning, executive director of the Maine Democratic Party, said he doesn't expect Democrats to be hurt by their votes on the marriage issue.

"I don't see any effect of this vote on elected officials," he said. "They voted their conscience. Election Day of next year is a long, long way from right now."

Manning also pointed out that many Republicans supported the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, yet voters rejected that measure by an even wider margin -- 60 percent to 40 percent.

But while TABOR isn't likely to be back on the ballot -- or before the Legislature -- any time soon, gay activists have said they will continue to push for equal marriage rights.

George Smith, executive director of the Sportsman's Alliance of Maine who's worked in the Statehouse for years, said legislators in rural districts may find themselves vulnerable on the issue.

"I think it entirely depends on their opponent," he said. "It will be coming back in some districts in 2010 when some people raise it in a campaign."

Rep. Ben Pratt, D-Eddington, is well aware the six towns in his district voted differently than he did when he supported gay marriage in the spring.

"There's no doubt in my mind I'll get heavy-duty grief for it," he said. "It's a tough sell back home in a lot of ways, but I still think it's the right thing to do. Eventually we'll get there."

Billings said that, in the past, Democrats have had success bringing up social issues, such as abortion, by targeting a certain message to particular voters. This time around, Republicans may be able to zero in on voters who feel strongly about their opposition to same-sex marriage.

"This creates a high profile issue where a lot of legislators are on the opposite side of their constituents," he said.

Rep. Paul GIlbert, D-Jay, who represents five towns that all voted to overturn the gay-marriage bill he supported, said this is just one of many votes he's taken on a variety of issues.

"I keep in pretty close contact with my constituents and we're usually on the same page," he said. "I had to vote my conscience on this, and I believe it's a civil rights issue."

In another example, Sen. Margaret Craven, D-Lewiston, supported same-sex marriage, but the people in her district rejected it 7,300 to 5,121.

"I was surprised, honestly, we lost in this area," she said. "I knew it would be close, but I would have thought we would have won by a tight margin."

Craven, who is Catholic, said she was disappointed the church fought so hard against gay marriage. She expects she will lose votes from some fellow church members because of her support.

But after careful consideration, she felt it was important to vote in favor of extending marriage rights to gay and lesbian couples.

"These are real people that live in the world that need legal protections," she said.

Susan Cover -- 620-7015

scover@centralmaine.com