Democrat Amy Acton Defeats Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio Governor’s Race

Democrat Amy Acton defeated Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio’s gubernatorial election Tuesday, becoming the first Democrat elected governor of the Buckeye State in 20 years.

The Associated Press declared Acton the winner at 9:49 p.m. Tuesday. With an estimated 86 percent of votes counted, Acton had received 50.8 percent of the vote, or 2,078,290 votes, compared with Ramaswamy’s 45.9 percent, or 1,876,035 votes. Libertarian Don Kissick received 3.3 percent, or 136,987 votes. 

Shortly after, AP called the state’s Senate race for Democrat Sherrod Brown, who ran against incumbent John Husted.

Acton, Ohio’s former Department of Health director, will succeed outgoing Republican Gov. Mike DeWine. 

Acton, Ohio’s former Department of Health director, will succeed outgoing Republican Gov. Mike DeWine in a state that has not elected a Democrat governor in roughly two decades. Ramaswamy, who won the Republican primary in May with President Donald Trump’s “complete and total endorsement.” Acton will succeed outgoing Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, becoming the first Democrat elected governor of Ohio in 20 years.

Acton served as Ohio’s Department of Health director during the early COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when the state became the first in the nation to close all public schools. She later resigned from the position, saying “the demands of the job were too great.” A February 2021 report from the Ohio Department of Education showed English language arts proficiency rates declining by approximately eight percentage points and math proficiency rates falling by roughly 15 percentage points across most grades.

Acton received support from American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, the Ohio Nurses Association, abortion-rights organization EMILY’s List, and more than 1,000 physicians who signed a letter calling the Ohio State Medical Association Political Action Committee’s endorsement of Ramaswamy a “betrayal.” Weingarten, whose union deployed “a lot of staff on the ground” to help elect Acton, praised her pandemic leadership, while Democratic state Rep. Ismail Mohamed urged Ohio’s Somali community to support her, calling the governor’s race “the most important race in Ohio.” White nationalist Nick Fuentes also endorsed Acton, urging followers to “VOTE AMY ACTON FOR GOVERNOR” after declaring, “We have to deny Vivek Ramaswamy the governorship.” Fuentes had targeted Ramaswamy over his Indian heritage, drawing condemnation from Republicans, including Ramaswamy, Vice President JD Vance, and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).

The campaign also drew attention in October when Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, appeared in a political advertisement urging Ohioans not to elect her daughter, accusing Acton of lying about her upbringing.

“She is a liar. She lies about her past. She says she grew up living in a tent. None of that is true. She’s lied her entire life,” Arthur said in the video. Acton’s brother, Philip Stearns, responded through her campaign, condemning the advertisement and accusing Ramaswamy of exploiting the sexual abuse Acton experienced as a child at the hands of their mother’s husband. Stearns said their mother remained married to the man until his death, describing the advertisement as a “desperate, disgusting attack.” Ramaswamy’s campaign subsequently confirmed that it produced the advertisement.

Breitbart News reported in May that the charitable foundation administered millions of dollars in grants during 2017 and 2018, when Acton worked there for less than two years as a grants manager. Recipients included Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio, the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, Food & Water Watch, CAIR Ohio, immigration and refugee assistance organizations, and community diversity initiatives. The foundation also administered grants to the Foundation for National Progress, which publishes Mother Jones. 

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