Acton vs. Ramaswamy: Ohio Race Tests COVID Legacy — SkimNews
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- Amy Acton, the Democratic nominee for Ohio governor and former state director of public health who led Ohio's aggressive 2020 COVID-19 response, is running on a platform of health care affordability and access rather than relitigating her pandemic decisions.
- Vivek Ramaswamy, the billionaire founder and former CEO of biotech company Roivant, is Acton's Republican opponent and has made accusations of government pandemic overreach — a theme from his 2024 presidential run — central to his gubernatorial campaign.
- At a campaign event in Canfield, Patrick Havas — who has pleaded not guilty to charges including assault — charged toward Acton while carrying two handguns, brass knuckles, and a Taser, knocking over an elderly couple; Acton did not make it onstage at a later event that day in Lorain.
- Affordable Care Act enrollment in Ohio dropped by one-third in the past year following the expiration of federal subsidies, the steepest decline of any state, a backdrop Acton's campaign is leaning into.
- STAT frames the race as potentially the most direct test among November's high-profile contests of where heartland public opinion currently stands on health care, trust in science, and the lasting legacy of the COVID pandemic.
Why it matters: The race will signal whether heartland voters reward or punish pandemic-era public health leadership: Acton is betting Ohioans want to move on to affordability, while Ramaswamy is betting pandemic-era grievances still move voters. Ohio just saw the nation's largest one-year ACA enrollment drop after federal subsidies expired, sharpening the affordability stakes for whoever wins.
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