Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on this week defended Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton after a new attack ad from Vivek Ramaswamy accused her of abusing power during the state’s 2020 election delay, putting DeWine at odds with his own party in one of the nation’s most competitive governor’s races.
A flurry of recent polls showed Acton with a lead over Ramaswamy, and DeWine moved quickly to dispute the ad’s central claim. Speaking to Columbus-based station WCMH, he said, “I told her to issue the health order. The decision was mine.” He also said, “In government this happens all the time. Do you think a member of the president’s Cabinet would issue this kind of order without his approval?”
Ramaswamy’s campaign ad said, “Amy Acton called off Ohio’s election at the last minute, defying a judge’s orders and abusing her power,” according to WCMH. The spot aimed squarely at Acton’s role leading the Ohio Department of Health during the 2020 pandemic, when the coronavirus was prompting global shutdowns in March 2020 and Ohio moved to close polls the night before its scheduled primary election.
The dispute matters now because Acton’s pandemic record remains one of the defining issues in the race to succeed DeWine, and Republicans have made clear they see it as a vulnerability. But DeWine’s decision to back Acton also signals a split inside his party at a time when the Ohio contest is expected to be among the closest in this year’s midterm elections.
Robert Alexander said Acton may be helped by a national mood “that is a bit sour on Donald Trump,” and said some voters may view Ramaswamy with suspicion because of his presidential ambitions in 2024. He said they may see the Republican as “an opportunist who is settling for the Ohio governorship as a consolation prize, who may jump ship to run for president again in 2028.” Alexander also said, “His suggestion that Ohio has too many colleges and that they should be consolidated certainly riled many throughout the state.”
Addie Bullock said Acton’s campaign is focused on practical concerns, not just the pandemic record. “Amy Acton is running to deliver for Ohioans, from lowering costs to tackling the rampant corruption in our Statehouse that continues to put the ultra-wealthy over the needs of working Ohioans. While Vivek Ramaswamy flies around in a private jet saying affordability is just a buzzword, Amy is fighting for a working families tax cut, to lower the rising cost of healthcare, and to build a state where all of us can get ahead,” she said.
The race is likely to stay centered on that clash: whether voters see Acton as the official who oversaw painful pandemic decisions under DeWine’s direction, or Ramaswamy as a newcomer whose attacks have left him exposed on trust and motive. For now, the unusual sight of a Republican governor defending the Democrat he once worked with suggests the attack may have cut less deeply than the campaign intended — and that Acton’s appeal is currently stronger than Ramaswamy’s in the fight for Ohio.
