AUGUSTA – Pro-racino ads featuring a matronly woman are being sponsored by the Citizens Committee for the Revitalization of Historic Bangor Raceway, Thomas Smith, chairman.

The ads are paid for by Shawn Scott of Capitol Seven, which owns Bangor Historic Raceway. He’s selling the track to Penn National Gaming Inc. of Pennsylvania.

Contacted Wednesday, Smith said he owns a Brewer printing company and also has a business interest in the Bangor track, but it’s a small one. He’s been associated with harness racing since he was 15 years old and has been a horseman.

Smith said he’s hoping the ad will “wake people up. Question 2 is something we all voted on, and it’s being torn to pieces. People should contact their legislator. It’s a call-to-action type of thing.”

A Penn National executive insisted on Wednesday that his company has nothing to do with the ads; that it intends to cooperate with Gov. John Baldacci and lawmakers. Penn National welcomes scrutiny and regulation.

“We’re not putting any ads on TV,” Penn National Senior Vice President Steven T. Synder said as the Legal and Veterans Affair Committee worked on L.D. 1820. “Capitol Seven has funded those ads,” Snyder, said, adding that Penn National and Capitol Seven “are not partners,” but that his firm is buying the track from Capitol Seven.”

Victoria Scott, the mother Shawn Scott, also attended the committee meeting. She said she doesn’t know anything about the ads. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

A call to Las Vegas to reach Scott was unsuccessful.

Scott’s Capitol Seven is the same organization that bought ads last fall featuring the same senior citizen. The ads were developed by a Texas political strategy company run by Dan McClung.

Penn National was working with Scarborough Downs, which was trying to gain approval from Saco or Westbrook to have 1,500 slot machines in either community.

Voters in both municipalities rejected the idea after the December campaigns featured Scott’s Capitol Seven buying negative ads attacking the reputation of Penn National.

After the elections, Penn National and Scott surprised many by announcing that Penn National was buying the Bangor track from Capitol Seven.

– Bonnie Washuk