Ohio Governor’s Race Tilts Toward Democrats After Ramaswamy’s Controversial Attack Ad

The Cook Political Report has moved its rating of the Ohio governor’s race from a toss-up to “Lean D,” signaling a potential advantage for Democrat Amy Acton following backlash over a controversial campaign ad from Republican Vivek Ramaswamy.“It’s an inescapable law of politics: Money can only propel a campaign so far when its candidate’s flaws act as an anchor,” the nonpartisan ratings organization wrote in its updated assessment. The Cook Report’s latest poll on the Ohio governor’s race has Ms. Acton leading by 5 percentage points.The ad at the center of the controversy features Ms. Acton’s estranged mother, Donna Arthur, calling her daughter “a liar” and urging Ohioans not to vote for her. Ms. Acton has said she hasn’t had contact with her mother since 1978, when her then-stepfather was indicted on charges of raping her as a 12-year-old. Ms. Acton and her brother were subsequently removed from the home.Despite bipartisan criticism — including from outgoing Republican Governor Mike DeWine, who called the ad “deeply, deeply troubling” — Mr. Ramaswamy’s campaign has committed to spending $4 million airing it and is now also running a shorter, 30-second version, according to a person close to the campaign who spoke to NBC News.President Trump has defended the ad. “A mother is saying, ‘Don’t put my daughter there because she’s a terrible person and she’s a liar,'” Trump said Friday. “Why shouldn’t somebody use that?”Mr. Ramaswamy has insisted the ad is unrelated to the abuse allegations. “It had nothing to do with childhood abuse, which I will be the number one governor to prosecute when I am the governor of this state,” he said Friday in Strongsville, Ohio.Two strategists close to Ms. Acton’s campaign, granted anonymity by The Washington Post to discuss internal strategy, cautioned against reading too much into the Cook Political Report’s shift, saying they still consider the race a toss-up. They pointed to Ohio’s decade-long lean toward Republicans and noted that GOP voters have historically returned to the party in the final days before an election. Ohio has not elected a Democratic governor in 20 years.In the 2024 presidential election, Mr. Trump pulled in 55 percent of more than 5 million votes cast to Kamala Harris’ 44 percent.On Saturday, Mr. Trump sided with Mr. Ramaswamy in the growing dispute, turning his criticism toward Mr. DeWine in a lengthy post on Truth Social. “Our RINO Governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine, who I unfortunately helped get elected years ago,” has been “disloyal to the Republican Party,” he wrote. Mr. Trump further suggested that Mr. DeWine’s objection stemmed from political self-interest, claiming Mr. DeWine “probably wants a Dumocrat to win.”Rather than distancing himself from the ad, Mr. Trump encouraged Mr. Ramaswamy to continue running it. “I suggested, on the other hand, that Vivek should keep it up,” Mr. Trump wrote, describing Ms. Acton as a “defective, dishonest, and incapable candidate.” He added, “Who wouldn’t use such an ad? I would; it’s called, ‘hitting pay dirt.'”

Ohio Governor’s Race Tilts Toward Democrats After Ramaswamy’s Controversial Attack Ad

Ohio Governor’s Race Tilts Toward Democrats After Ramaswamy’s Controversial Attack Ad

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