A new attack ad featuring the estranged mother of Democratic Ohio governor candidate Amy Acton calls her a “liar” while endorsing her Republican rival, Vivek Ramaswamy. Acton’s campaign and her brother have condemned the advertisement as a “despicable low.”
In the commercial, Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, whose husband was accused of raping Acton as a child, says: “It’s not easy for a mother to say this, but Amy was a serious problem. She is a liar; she lies about her past.”
Acton’s brother, Philip Stearns, sharply criticized Ramaswamy after the ad surfaced. “It’s not surprising that Vivek Ramaswamy has stooped to such a despicable low as to attempt to turn the sexual abuse Amy endured at twelve years old from our birth mother’s husband into a political talking point,” he said.
Stearns said he and Acton were removed from the Arthurs’ custody after their stepfather, Cledith Arthur, was arrested and charged. The siblings then went to live with their father.
“Our birth mother stayed married to Amy’s rapist until he died,” Stearns said. “This desperate, disgusting attack reveals exactly who Vivek Ramaswamy is at his core – a pathetic excuse for a man who is willing to hurt anyone as long as it gets him what he wants.”
Ramaswamy told reporters Tuesday that the commercial came from his campaign, according to The Columbus Dispatch. He defended the ad, saying, “Every person who appears to know her the best … have told voters not to vote for her but to vote for me instead.”
The ad began circulating on social media Monday night, though its origins were initially uncertain. It does not include the required disclosure identifying who paid for and authorized it. The commercial has not aired on television or cable, but it has spread widely online.
Connie Luck, a spokesperson for Ramaswamy, said Tuesday: “We don’t know what happened between Amy and her mother, who first spoke out about Amy in 2020, but we know that Amy Acton is a serial fabulist who has some serious problems with the truth that the public needs to be aware of before deciding who to entrust as governor.”
The Ohio Republican Party did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Acton, who served as Ohio’s public health commissioner under Republican Gov. Mike DeWine during the COVID-19 pandemic, has previously spoken about being abused by her now-deceased stepfather. Court records supplied by her campaign show that Arthur was charged in 1978 with raping Acton when she was between 10 and 12 years old. He pleaded not guilty.
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Acton has also described experiencing poverty and homelessness during her childhood. Records provided by her campaign indicate that the family lived in a tent for a year.
In a 2019 interview with the Youngstown Vindicator, Acton said her circumstances became more stable after she and her brother went to live with their father.
“In the courthouse after they were charged, I went to give her a kiss, and she just turned her cheek away,” Acton told The Vindicator seven years ago. “That was the last time I ever saw her.” Her campaign says the court appearance remains the last time Acton saw her mother.
Donna Arthur and her husband, who had been released on bond, left Ohio without facing charges, according to the news site. Court records show that warrants were issued for Cledith Arthur’s arrest at least twice in the following years. Donna and Cledith Arthur lived in Pennsylvania until his death in 2004.
Supporters of Ramaswamy have made other personal attacks against Acton, who has led in polls over the past month.
Other details of Acton’s personal life have also resurfaced during the campaign, including a 2019 incident in which police were called to her home over what was described as a domestic dispute.
