A number of prominent Republicans have criticized Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and his campaign over an attack ad featuring the estranged mother of his Democratic rival, Amy Acton.
In the one-minute video—which the Ramaswamy campaign confirms it produced and will spend $4 million airing in the closing days of the race—Donna Arthur calls her daughter a “liar” with a “serious problem.”
“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 says.
Acton, former director of the Ohio Department of Health, has been open about facing sexual abuse and homelessness during her childhood. Her brother, Philip Stearns, has said that the family spent time living in a tent growing up and that their mother lost custody of her children after her husband, Cledith Arthur, was arrested and charged with sexually abusing Acton. Stearns said the pair were together until his death.
The ad has drawn widespread criticism as exploitative, and the backlash is seen as a major hurdle for Ramaswamy’s campaign ahead of Election Day on November 3. Much of this criticism has come from Republicans, including those who previously endorsed the Ohioan entrepreneur.
Commentator Meghan McCain called the ad “dastardly,” while former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley—who called Ramaswamy “scum” during a presidential primary debate in 2023—said the episode underscored her longstanding feelings about him.
“Just seeing what we tried to tell everyone back then,” she posted to X. “He’s a bad guy. It’s a shame he continues to get away with it.”
Newsweek contacted both campaigns on Wednesday via email for comment
What Was in the Ad?
"I love my daughter, but when I saw her lying about her opponent—and it's not easy for a mother to say this—but Amy has a serious problem," Acton’s mother said in the ad. "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."
The statements made by Arthur in the video are allegations and have not been corroborated by Ramaswamy’s team.
In response to criticisms, a spokesperson for the campaign told Newsweek in an emailed statement Tuesday that “we don't know what happened between Amy and her mother, who first spoke out about Amy in 2020, but we know that Amy Acton is a serial fabulist who has some serious problems with the truth that the public needs to be aware of before deciding who to entrust as governor."
The campaign said Acton's mother was not paid for the ad and told the Statehouse News Bureau it would spend millions of dollars airing it across Ohio because it performed well with “persuadable” voters.
Acton’s campaign, in response, put out a statement from her brother, who said it was unsurprising that Ramaswamy “has stooped to such a despicable low as to attempt to turn the sexual abuse Amy endured at twelve years old from our birth mother’s husband into a political talking point.”
“This desperate, disgusting attack reveals exactly who Vivek Ramaswamy is at his core – a pathetic excuse for a man who is willing to hurt anyone as long as it gets him what he wants,” the statement continued.
Cross-Party Backlash Grows
The ad has faced cross-party condemnation since it first surfaced on social media.
On Wednesday, the editorial board of the Columbus Dispatch officially endorsed Acton over Ramaswamy, while calling the ad “revolting and unsettling.”
“It should go without saying that sexual violence against children should not be politicized or taken as lightly as Ramaswamy appears to take it,” they wrote.
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The Democratic strategist Paul Begala called it the “scummiest” thing he had ever seen in politics.
“He's going to go down in history not as a governor of Ohio, but as the guy who ran the scummiest, sleaziest ad in American history,” Begala told CNN on Tuesday.
And Acton’s campaign has since aired a counter-ad featuring her brother, which criticizes her opponent for turning childhood sexual abuse into a “talking point.”
Republicans Turn on Ramaswamy
Casey Putsch, a Republican who ran against Ramaswamy in the gubernatorial primary, took to X on Tuesday to announce that he would be voting for Acton.
“I’m a Republican, but I’m crossing party lines to vote for Amy and end Vivek’s political future in America,” he said.
And while there have been no mass defections or rescinded endorsements, conservative criticism has been widespread.
Talk show host Jason Rantz told CNN that if he lived in Ohio, he would have voted for Ramaswamy, but that the “unbelievably disgusting” ad changed that.
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Many Republican and pro-Donald Trump social media accounts that originally pushed the video as a last-minute bombshell have since deleted these posts.
“My apologies. I posted the video of Amy Acton’s mother without understanding the details behind their relationship and the very serious accusations that caused their issues,” Dan Hauser, chief strategist for Utah Senator Mike Lee, wrote on X.
“I need to offer an apology to Amy Acton, and condemn Vivek's actions in regard to the ad featuring Amy's mother,” wrote "SGT Decker," an account that continues posting in support of Ramaswamy. “After a minimal amount of research, it appears Amy's story regarding her abuse is true. I should have dug deeper into her allegations before posting any opinion on this. I am sorry.”
“This is a dastardly ad. It never should have been created. Shame on whatever consultant firm created this,” the McCain, daughter of the late Republican Senator John McCain, posted to X.
But many of those who shared the video have yet to delete their posts, including President Trump’s son, Donald Jr., whose post on X read: “YIkes! Ohio watch this and think about what it means.”
And the activist Laura Loomer has said that Republicans “attacked” Ramaswamy were “rooting for Democrats to win in November.”
“I’m really happy @VivekGRamaswamy doubled down on his ad about Amy Acton’s mother,” she posted to X on Tuesday. “It’s nice to see a candidate have courage and fight the left with a dose of their own medicine. I’m not shocked to see many in the GOP attack Vivek for his ad. Our party is full of people who are addicted to losing and people who enjoy celebrating mediocrity.”
Acton Vs. Ramaswamy: What Polls Show
Polls conducted before the ad controversy show a close race between the two candidates, though some show Ramaswamy has struggled with independents.
The latest survey from ActiVote—conducted from September 27 to October 19 among 400 likely midterm voters—gave Ramaswamy a 2.8-point advantage, which was within its margin of error.
Prior to this, Acton secured a statistically significant 7-point lead in a Marist poll of 1,176 Ohio likely voters, which was fielded from October 15 through October 18.
While no polls have been conducted since the ad first surfaced, prediction markets show Ramaswamy’s odds have plummeted amid the backlash.
Acton has soared to a 79 percent favorite on Polymarket, up from 72 percent a week ago and a trailing 49 percent back in August. On Kalshi, as of Wednesday morning, users believed Ramaswamy's chances of victory had fallen to just 25 percent.
What's Next: Key Voting Info for Ohio
Ohioans will choose a successor to term-limited Republican Governor Mike DeWine on November 3.
Early in-person voting began October 6, along with absentee voting. Absentee ballot applications must be received by the county boards of elections by October 27. The final day of in-person voting in Ohio will be November 1.
Polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on November 3 for Election Day.
Non-military absentee ballots have to be received by 7:30 p.m. on November 3 as well, but military and overseas absentee ballots have to arrive and be counted by November 7.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors on this story: John Fitzpatrick and Gray R. Thomas