Amy Acton wins Ohio governorship, defeating Vivek Ramaswamy

Democrat Amy Acton won Ohio’s governor’s race Tuesday, defeating Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in a state Donald Trump carried by 11 points in 2024. The former state health director is the first woman elected governor of Ohio and the first Democrat to win the office since 2006.

Acton, 60, will succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, ending 16 years of Republican control of the governor’s office. She will take office in January alongside a Republican-controlled legislature. Nancy Hollister, a former lieutenant governor, served as governor for 11 days in 1999, but was not elected to the post.

“Tonight, Ohio has chosen unity and decency over division and hate,” Acton said in a statement reported by NBC News. She pledged to lower costs, take on corruption and govern for all Ohioans, regardless of how they voted.

Acton led Ohio’s health department during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic under DeWine. The two appeared at regular briefings announcing restrictions and safety measures before she resigned in June 2020. Ramaswamy and his allies made her role in school and business closures a central campaign issue. DeWine, who had final authority over those decisions, has said attacks on her pandemic work were unfair.

A first-time candidate who grew up in Youngstown, Acton framed her campaign around affordability and her experience serving in a Republican administration. Her proposals included an earned income tax credit, a child tax credit of up to $1,000, a public prescription drug platform and property tax relief for seniors and middle-income homeowners. NPR also reported that she backed medical debt forgiveness.

Ramaswamy, 41, is a biotech entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate who had Trump’s endorsement. He promised to phase out Ohio’s income tax within a decade, reduce property taxes, cut energy bills and restore what he called “law and order” in cities. Trump campaigned for him in Ohio.

The contest grew increasingly expensive and bitter. By mid-October, Ramaswamy and his allies had spent more than $100 million on ads against Acton, roughly three times her campaign’s spending, according to The Guardian. Early polls had shown Acton trailing by double digits, but October polls later put her ahead.

The sharpest backlash came after Ramaswamy’s campaign announced a $4 million ad featuring Acton’s estranged mother, Donna Arthur, calling her daughter a liar and urging voters to reject her. Acton has said she has not seen or spoken with Arthur in nearly 50 years. Arthur lost custody of Acton after Arthur’s then-husband, Acton’s stepfather, was accused of sexually abusing her when she was a child.

DeWine and other Republicans joined Democrats in condemning the ad. Trump and Vice President JD Vance backed it, while Ramaswamy refused to apologize or take it down. The Guardian reported that the ad was eventually discontinued before Election Day.

“My opponent has chosen to exploit, intentionally, my childhood to save his struggling campaign, but it’s not going to work,” Acton said at an Oct. 24 rally in Cleveland, according to NBC News.