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Ramaswamy says his campaign produced Amy Acton attack ad, will spend $4M to air it

politicsOct 21, 2026311,548

Vivek Ramaswamy acknowledged that his campaign produced a controversial ad featuring the estranged mother of Democratic Ohio gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton and said the campaign will spend $4 million to air it. The ad includes Acton’s mother calling Acton a “liar” and it invokes Acton’s childhood trauma after her mother’s then‑partner was arrested for sexually abusing Acton; Acton’s brother Philip Stearns condemned the spot saying, “After he was arrested and Amy and I were removed from their custody, our birth mother stayed married to Amy’s rapist until he died,” and called the ad “desperate” and “disgusting.” Ramaswamy’s campaign first declined to confirm who made the ad before he took responsibility. The decision to run the ad has drawn bipartisan rebuke and intensified criticism of Ramaswamy’s tactics in the Ohio governor’s race, leaving Acton’s campaign and allies to press the moral and political response in the coming days.

Christopher Webb
@cwebbonline.com

Vivek Ramaswamy’s attack ad targeting Amy Acton’s childhood trauma crosses every line of human decency. The ad circulated without disclosing who was behind it. His campaign initially dodged responsibility, then Vivek admitted it was his and plans to spend $4 million to promote it.

8184h ago
Morning Joe
@morningjoe-msnow.bsky.social

Ohio Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy is facing backlash for a campaign ad featuring Democratic opponent Amy Acton’s estranged mother. Acton’s mother stood by and fled the state with her husband after he was arrested for raping Amy as a child.

253h ago
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