TULSA, Okla. (AP) - Four longtime employees of the Cherokee Nation are suing the tribe's chief for wrongful termination, alleging they were forced out because they supported his political opponent in last year's election.

The lawsuit against Principal Chief Bill John Baker was filed in Cherokee Nation district court last month by ex-employees Sammye Rusco, Rachel McAlvain, Paula Ragsdale and Felicia Olaya. Olaya is the daughter of late Cherokee Chief Wilma Mankiller, who was one of the only women to lead a major tribe.

All four women actively supported Baker's opponent, Chad Smith, last fall, and claim in the nine-page complaint that their terminations were done in retaliation. They are seeking $250,000 in general damages, $1 million in punitive damages and attorneys' fees.

A spokeswoman for the Cherokee Nation said she could not comment on the allegations Wednesday because the lawsuit is pending litigation.

Smith, who lost his bid for a fourth term as chief to Baker after a brutal political fight that roiled Oklahoma's largest American Indian tribe, is representing the four women pro bono. Smith says he has no agenda in bringing the case against his political nemesis.

'These particular people, they cannot afford an attorney otherwise,' Smith said Wednesday. 'I believe they were wronged, and I agreed to do this pro bono for them.'

Smith described the current atmosphere among Cherokee employees as one of fear and intimidation, and said he anticipates he will take on more clients in the wrongful termination case.

'They are letting tribal employees go,' he said. 'People keep asking, 'Am I on the list? Am I safe?' People are keeping their heads down. It's not a healthy environment.'

The four women have said the current environment at the Tahlequah-based headquarters flies in the face of the memo Baker sent to the nation's 8,000 employees on Oct. 20 that said: 'Now more than ever, we need our employees' focus and dedication, and I want them to understand they are valued, trusted and greatly needed.'

'If my mom were alive today, she would be 100 percent behind the employees that have filed the lawsuit,' said Olaya, who served as the executive assistant to the principal chief since 1999. 'I truly believe I was terminated for political reasons. I am a rank and file employee and have been for 12 years and was let go the day Bill John Baker took office because I supported Chad Smith in the election.'

Rusco, the nation's former director of communications, said she was initially conflicted about joining the lawsuit, but concluded that 'it's very difficult sometimes to do the right thing.'

'What this lawsuit will do in court will protect other employees,' she said. 'Employees are afraid. They are scared about what is going to happen next.'

Smith and Baker spent the better part of last year locked in a political battle to become the leader of the 300,000-member tribe, many of whose members do not live in Oklahoma. The results of the initial ballot last June flipped several times because of recounts - Smith and Baker were each declared the winner twice. After the fifth ballot count revealed different numbers, the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court ordered a new election for Sept. 24, and Baker beat Smith by nearly 1,600 votes.