FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 21, 2026
CONTACT: [email protected]
COLUMBUS DISPATCH EDITORIAL BOARD ENDORSES DR. AMY ACTON
“It is clear that Ohio will be far better off under Acton’s administration.”
COLUMBUS, OH– Today, the Columbus Dispatch Editorial Board issued an endorsement of Dr. Amy Acton’s campaign for governor, praising her “bipartisan credibility” and proclaiming that Dr. Acton is “focused on what matters to the people of Ohio,” including the “90-some percent of things” Ohioans tell her about, like lowering costs. In their endorsement, they issued a stunning rebuke of Vivek Ramaswamy, condemning the “revolting and unsettling” ads he has aired about Dr. Acton, including using Dr. Acton’s estranged and abusive mother. They write that “sexual violence against children should not be politicized or taken as lightly as Ramaswamy appears to take it.”
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- Acton is the scrappy kid from Youngstown who overcame poverty and childhood sexual abuse to earn an undergrad degree from Youngstown State University, a medical degree from Northeastern Ohio University College of Medicine and a master’s degree in public health from Ohio State University.
- Acton is focused on what matters to the people of Ohio. As a Democrat who served in the administration of Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, she has bipartisan credibility, something our reddish-purple state desperately needs.
- Acton says she will work on the “90-some percent of things” Ohioans she’s met around the state the past two and a half years are begging to get done because there is no breathing room for small businesses, families and individuals.
- Acton says she will push for better child care and pre-K education, create what she says would be the nation’s largest integrated parks system, oppose fracking in state parks, expand workforce development and invest in affordable housing and solutions for renters and first-time homebuyers. She wants to expand the homestead exemption and scale back property taxes for elderly homeowners and those facing spikes.
- …Acton said she’ll support rural and urban hospitals on the brink and protect Medicaid.
- Ramaswamy, in a 2024 interview with the New York Times’ Ezra Klein. called the creation of Medicare and Medicaid mistakes.
- Acton said she will follow in DeWine’s footsteps in picking the best and brightest for her administration despite party affiliation.
- “We need to get back to doing that good, hard arguing, fighting about the nuances of policy because that’s how you get the best answer,” she said.
- The ads and smear campaign shame her for seeking therapy to deal with the trauma of child sexual assault and attempt to portray an argument with her husband as evidence of drug and alcohol abuse.
- Most revolting and unsettling is a new “October surprise” ad created by Ramaswamy’s campaign and posted on social media.
- Acton’s younger brother and court documents backed her claims.
- Ramaswamy doubled down by ugly by calling Acton a liar, even though her stepfather, Cledith Arthur, was charged and fled the state. He eluded multiple warrants before dying in 2004.
- It should go without saying that sexual violence against children should not be politicized or taken as lightly as Ramaswamy appears to take it.
- The attacks coming from Team Ramaswamy against Acton have been blatant, intrusive, and overwhelming. Nearly 50% of respondents to a Suffolk University/USA TODAY Ohio Network poll said Ramaswamy is engaging in more political mudslinging than Acton.
- Ramaswamy, who in 2024 moved his financial services firm from Columbus to Dallas, told our editorial boards that he has had lengthy conversations with DeWine and wants to serve the 12 million people of Ohio.
- …The out-of-the-box, shoot-from-the-hip thinking that worked in business can be reckless when governing a state with complex laws and nuanced systems.
- Ramaswamy said he’d motivate those working beneath him to be courageous and open-minded if elected governor when our board asked about potential state job cuts.
- Cuts to the state government could be devastating to the local economy. A 2025 Columbus city community profile estimated that 24,217 state of Ohio employees reside in central Ohio, making it the third-highest employer behind Ohio Health with 24,662 workers and 36,433 at Ohio State University, whose employees are state workers.
- …It is clear that Ohio will be far better off under Acton’s administration.
- [Dr. Acton] is… someone with a vision for a better Ohio and the compassion and determination we need at this critical moment.
- Ohio does not need more chaos. It needs balance and a champion who will work. Of the two candidates on the Nov. 3 ballot, Acton best fits that bill.
- That’s why Amy Acton has our endorsement.
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