Vivek Ramaswamy’s attack ad featuring Democrat Amy Acton’s estranged mother is hurting him in the Ohio governor’s race, according to a private poll commissioned by a Republican group.
The survey of 800 likely voters, taken Oct. 23 to 26, found Acton leading 50% to 42%, up from a two-point edge in the same poll earlier this month, Axios reported. The ad began circulating Oct. 19.
A memo with the poll said the ad “is having a significant effect on the gubernatorial race.” Eighty-six percent of respondents had heard of it, and by a 2-to-1 margin those familiar said it made them more likely to back Acton.
In the ad, Donna Arthur accuses her daughter of lying about her childhood and urges Ohioans not to vote for her. Acton, the state’s former health director, has said her stepfather sexually abused her at age 12 and her mother sided with him.
The stepfather was charged but fled to Pennsylvania and died a fugitive in 2004. Acton and her brother were removed from their mother’s custody, and Acton has said she hasn’t seen her mother since 1978.
A Split Among Republicans
Ramaswamy’s campaign committed $4 million to air the spot statewide despite warnings from fellow Republicans. Gov. Mike DeWine, who worked closely with Acton, called the ad wrong and urged Ramaswamy to take it down while keeping his endorsement, NBC News reported.
President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have backed Ramaswamy, and Vance told critics of the ad to “stop whining”. Sen. Jon Husted, who is also on the November ballot, has said he wouldn’t have run it.
“Vivek’s ad put the whole Republican ticket on defense. He better hope Ohio doesn’t decide the Senate majority,” said a GOP operative briefed on the polling. A source close to the campaign said, “The candidate is the one pushing for it.”
Ramaswamy has not backed down. At a stop in Thornville on Monday he told supporters he was “running against someone who is crazy, who is unstable, and who is a liar,” the Daily Mail reported.
The same report quoted Acton’s 62-year-old stepsister, who asked not to be named, saying she believes Acton’s account of abuse and of the family living in a tent. “All that is definitely true,” she said.
Not every survey shows the race moving against him. A Suffolk University poll put Acton ahead by four points, narrower than Suffolk’s nine-point gap in late September. The Washington Post reported last week that early signs showed the ad hurting Ramaswamy.
Ramaswamy argues Acton has misrepresented her past and dodged the issues facing Ohio voters. His campaign declined to comment on the Republican poll.
Trump was scheduled to rally with Ramaswamy and Husted in Chillicothe on Wednesday evening, six days before the Nov. 3 election.
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