Acton Campaign Says It Won’t Debate Ramaswamy in Ohio Governor’s Race

Democrat Amy Acton will not debate Republican nominee Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio’s race for governor, her campaign said this week.

Acton’s campaign manager, Phil Stein, announced the decision in a statement released Wednesday, saying Acton would not be “platforming a scam artist who spreads baseless lies.”

“Dr. Acton’s focus is talking with Ohioans, not platforming a scam artist who spreads baseless lies about her and her family, uses AI to falsely paint her as someone with a substance abuse problem, and shames Dr. Acton for being sexually abused as a child while Vivek stands with predators and abusers,” Stein said.

Stein also accused Ramaswamy and his allies of spending heavily on negative advertising. “Ramaswamy and his billionaire buddies have spent more than $50 million on disgusting, inaccurate attack ads that have been condemned as the ‘most vile and repulsive lies’ Ohio has ever seen,” he said.

The substance abuse accusations referenced in Stein’s statement trace back to a 2019 incident in which police responded to Acton’s home. According to reporting from journalist Henry Gomez, Acton told officers at the time that she had been drinking and had taken an unknown amount of prescription drugs. Gomez noted the broader accusations against her have not been substantiated.

Ramaswamy’s Response

Ramaswamy pushed back in his own statement, framing debates as a basic obligation for candidates seeking office.

“Debates are the equivalent of a job interview for candidates running for office,” he said. “Candidates need to be willing to publicly debate and not shy away from them out of fear of scrutiny.”

He went further, criticizing Acton’s fitness for the job. “It’s too bad for Ohio voters that Acton won’t take voter questions, won’t debate, quit after failing as Ohio’s health director, and has some serious issues now surfaced in multiple police reports. We pray for her, but this isn’t someone fit to lead our state of 12 million people,” Ramaswamy said.

Ramaswamy also pointed to comments made in 2014 by Acton’s running mate, David Pepper, who at the time said that refusing to debate shows “contempt for voters and civic groups” and that “candidates owe it to their fellow Ohioans to stand next to each other to defend their positions.”

“It’s a valid point, hopefully they talk it out amongst themselves,” Ramaswamy said in response.

Neither campaign has indicated whether the debate standoff will change ahead of the general election.