President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind Ohio Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy in a widening dispute over a campaign ad featuring the estranged mother of his Democratic rival, Amy Acton.
In a Truth Social post on Thursday, Trump urged Ramaswamy to keep the ad running and excoriated Ohio Governor Mike DeWine for calling on him to pull it, saying DeWine was "disloyal to the Republican party" and accusing him of wanting a Democrat to win. "Anybody whose mother spoke about a daughter in that way would normally lead to the daughter being precluded from serving in office," Trump wrote.
The ad, which Ramaswamy's campaign has confirmed as its own work and is spending $4m to air across Ohio, shows Acton's mother, Donna Arthur, calling her daughter "a liar" and disputing her account of a childhood involving homelessness and sexual abuse by her stepfather. The stepfather was charged with rape and died in 2004. Acton says she has not seen her mother since 1978.
DeWine told reporters at the Ohio statehouse the ad was "deeply, deeply troubling" and "wrong to run," recalling the painful experiences of rape victims he dealt with as a county prosecutor and state attorney general. He noted that family members have historically been off limits in campaigns, though Acton had earlier referred to the alleged involvement of Ramaswamy's mother in a "pump and dump" scheme with less prominence. His wife Fran had seen the ad on television that morning, he said.
The governor's call drew support from other Republicans. US Senator Jon Husted said he "would not have run that ad," and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said he "probably wouldn't run an ad like that." Democratic Senate candidate Sherrod Brown called the video "disgusting."
Vice President JD Vance brushed aside the criticism while campaigning with Ramaswamy on Wednesday. "Whether the ad was appropriate or not is not really my concern," Vance said. "Politics is a tough business."
Ramaswamy's campaign rejected calls to withdraw the ad. Spokesperson Connie Luck said: "We refuse to accept the media's double standards when Democrats have regularly used family members of President Trump, RFK Jr, and other Republicans in ads."
Acton's brother, Philip Stearns, called the ad "a despicable low" and "a desperate, disgusting attack," noting that he and his sister were removed from Arthur's custody after the stepfather's arrest. Campaign spokesperson Addie Bullock called Ramaswamy's decision to promote it "both despicable and entirely predictable."
DeWine declined to withdraw his endorsement of Ramaswamy, saying he wanted to support the "full ticket" of Republican candidates. Polls suggest Acton is narrowly leading in the race to replace the term-limited DeWine ahead of the 3 November midterms.