Columbus, OH — Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is doubling down on a deeply personal attack against Democrat Amy Acton, spending $4 million to air an advertisement featuring her estranged mother despite widespread criticism from both Republicans and Democrats.
The ad features Donna Arthur calling her daughter a “liar” and disputing Acton’s longstanding account of a childhood marked by instability, homelessness and sexual abuse.
Acton has said she was sexually abused by her stepfather when she was around 12 and that her mother failed to protect her. Her brother, Philip Stearns, said their mother remained married to the man accused of abusing Acton even after the children were removed from the home.
Ramaswamy initially did not identify his campaign as the source of the viral video, but later acknowledged producing it. His campaign told Axios that internal testing showed the ad performing well with “persuadable” voters and is moving ahead with the multimillion-dollar buy despite the backlash.
Even conservative commentators have condemned the tactic. Mary Katharine Ham questioned how the campaign could expect the ad not to backfire, while Meghan McCain and other Republicans criticized the use of an estranged parent against a candidate.
A mid-October Marist poll showed Acton leading Ramaswamy 50% to 43% among likely Ohio voters.
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