DeWine urges Ramaswamy to pull Acton family ad

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine urged Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy to stop airing an advertisement featuring the estranged mother of his Democratic opponent, Amy Acton, while reaffirming his endorsement of Ramaswamy. DeWine called the advertisement troubling at a Thursday news conference at the Ohio Statehouse. He said the family history made it more serious and urged the campaign to take it down. He said his comments about the ad did not change his support for Ramaswamy or the Republican ticket. The 60-second spot features Acton’s birth mother, Donna Arthur, calling her daughter a liar and urging voters not to support her. Ramaswamy has taken responsibility for the ad, which his campaign is paying to broadcast on television and online. One report put the statewide airtime purchase at $4 million. Acton has spoken publicly about being sexually abused as a child by her mother’s husband. Her brother, Philip Stearns, said in a video for her campaign that she endured abuse and protected him from it. He condemned the advertisement for making her childhood a political talking point. Police and court records described in one report show that Cledith Arthur, Acton’s...