Ohio’s largest newspaper backed Democrat Amy Acton for governor and denounced recent actions by her Republican opponent Vivek Ramaswamy on Monday, reversing a previously announced no-endorsement policy for up-ballot candidates.
The editorial board of The Plain Dealer cited in part a campaign ad run by Ramaswamy featuring Acton’s estranged mother, who stood by her stepfather after he was accused of raping Acton when she was a child.
“A candidate who uses childhood sexual abuse as a weapon against the person who endured it has crossed a line that Ohioans should defend, whatever their party,” the Cleveland-based newspaper’s editorial board wrote.
The endorsement reverses course on the publication’s decision, announced a few months ago, to focus on down-ballot contests and stay out of races for governor, U.S. Senate and president.
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“We made our endorsement policy to serve our readers,” the paper wrote. “We cannot let it become a reason to remain silent when we believe Ohio faces a choice this consequential.”
The Republican’s campaign pushed back on the endorsement, taking aim at Chris Quinn, who helps lead the newsroom strategy for both The Plain Dealer and cleveland.com.
“Anyone who thought Chris Quinn’s paper wouldn’t back the liberal in this race is fooling themselves,” Evan Machan, Ramaswamy’s press secretary, wrote in a statement. He did not immediately elaborate on that.
Acton wrote Sunday on X that she is “honored” to have the paper’s endorsement.
The paper noted that the “endorsement of Acton rests on more than Ramaswamy’s failure to meet a basic standard of decency,” and touted the Democrat’s previous experience working for the state, meeting with communities throughout Ohio and participating in the publication’s 15-part series answering questions from readers — noting that Ramaswamny did not participate.
“He has focused much of his attention on wealthy donors while steadfastly refusing to explain what he would do about many of the issues he would face as governor,” the editorial board wrote.
In the ad in question, Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, called her daughter “a liar” and said she has a “serious problem.” The ad did not explicitly mention her late stepfather, with whom Arthur fled the state before his case came to trial, but the message drew immediate backlash from both sides of the political aisle — including from Ohio’s Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, who called on Ramaswamny to take down the ad.
Ramaswamy, as well as President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, have repeatedly stood by the campaign spot.
“Frankly, anybody whose mother spoke about a daughter in that way would normally lead to the daughter being precluded from serving in Office, let alone the Office of Governor,” Trump wrote Thursday on Truth Social.
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