As an Ohio native, a state that has not been blue in over a decade, I watched the midterm results creeping in on election night closely. There were many elections across the country to monitor on Nov. 3, but I kept my eye on the Ohio race for governor between Democratic candidate Amy Acton and Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
As a medical doctor, Acton campaigned on lowering the cost of healthcare, ensuring reproductive freedom and building safer communities. She also claimed that her background with a difficult childhood made her tough and gives her a position of sympathy for all Ohioans.
Republican candidate Ramaswamy promised lower taxes, higher quality education and crushing crime. He founded a biotechnology pharmaceutical company, Roivant Sciences, which put him on Forbes’ 2026 billionaire list. Ramaswamy received endorsements from both the president and Ohio’s current Republican governor, Mike DeWine. Ramaswamy still chose to denounce Acton’s personal history, calling her a “serial liar.”
Ramaswamy published an ad campaign three weeks before election day, featuring Acton’s mother saying Acton was lying about suffering childhood sexual abuse alongside her brother. The move represented an utter disregard for sexual assault survivors, encouraging a culture of political impunity for men in power. A candidate who focuses on dismantling their opponent’s character is not one who will serve their residents well. Rather than focusing on how to best improve the state and the lives of the people he represents, he was set solely on beating his competition.
Although Ramaswamy received backlash from many members of his own party, President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance both announced their support for his decision to air the ad before it was finally taken down three days before the election. During President Trump’s first presidential campaign in 2016, he used personal attacks against his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, defying U.S. political traditions of respecting an opponent. Steven Levtisky and Daniel Ziblatt explain this method in their book “How Democracies Die.” The authors outline a test of warning signs for potential authoritarians, and state that Trump checked all the boxes before he was even elected. One of the qualities is “denial of the legitimacy of one’s opponents,” which Trump demonstrated in many distasteful ways, including calling Clinton a “criminal.” When he ran against Kamala Harris in 2024, he attacked her intelligence and questioned her ability to run for president by telling his supporters she was “slow.”
Since his campaign in 2016, Trump has maintained his strategy of aggressive attacks against his opponents. Trump fosters a political landscape where he gives permission for Republican candidates to fight by attempting to dismantle their opponent’s credibility, rather than building their own.
According to The New York Times election results, Acton beat Ramaswamy in the race by almost eight percentage points, making her the first female governor Ohio has ever had. I’m glad my state chose to prioritize a qualified candidate who is able to better connect with its residents, rather than a Trump-backed billionaire. In the 2024 presidential election, my used-to-be swing state turned out bleeding red. It was easy to feel discouraged when Ohio conservatives quickly became comfortable posting yard signs with MAGA rhetoric.
In contrast to Ramaswamy, Acton represents a focus on the people whom she will serve in office. Ohio elected her because she ran without deigning to play dirty. She was previously appointed by Mike DeWine as the Director of the Ohio Department of Health, serving through the pandemic. She also comes from a working class background, putting her more in touch with Ohioans than a billionaire could be. Along with other Democrats who won the midterms, she demonstrates that Trump’s attack strategy is no longer on the table. Americans require legitimate candidates in office. It’s not acceptable to win on the basis of what you are not.
Election night produced countless historical firsts. Georgia elected the first Black female governor, California and Texas elected their state’s first Latine governors and New Mexico elected its first Native American governor. Michigan elected the first Muslim senator and New Hampshire elected the first openly gay man to the U.S. senate. Acton is one of many candidates who had to fight against deeply personal attacks rooted in misogyny, racism and xenophobia.
These victories expose the facade of strength that a Trump-style campaign carries: the need to tear down the opponent is founded in fragility. It reveals the country’s new demand for real strength and persistence, and an urgency for politician’s attentiveness to the people rather than oneself. It comes as a relief that, in electing Acton, Ohio chose decency, and I’m proud to have participated in the progress I see. After leaning red for many years now, Acton is giving Ohio’s future a new look.
Contact Lila Weiner at weinerl@oxy.edu
