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Amy Acton, the Democratic candidate for Ohio governor, raised $5.2 million in the first quarter of this year, bringing her total to $10 million.
A record showing for a Democratic candidate for governor in Ohio. No Democrat has ever raised more.
But to the biotech billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy, her Republican opponent, that’s chump change, the kind of money you find between the cushions of a couch.
Ramaswamy — who moved his business interests from Ohio to Texas just before announcing his candidacy — just unloaded $25 million of his own money as a loan to his campaign.
That news pricked up the ears of the political class all over Ohio, and rightly so. It could be — and, in fact is — a good sign that Ramaswamy is in trouble, with polls showing the Ohio governor’s race as a toss-up, too close to call.
A close race was not what Ramaswamy expected when he quit his job with Elon Musk and DOGE early last year, and returned to Ohio, a state won by Donald Trump in Nov. 2024 by 11 percentage points.
He wanted Gov. Mike DeWine to appoint him to replace JD Vance in the U.S. Senate. But DeWine chose his lieutenant governor, Jon Husted instead.
Ramaswamy said in July of last year that he expected to spend at least $30 million of his own fortune on his campaign for governor.
But now, with Trump’s approval rating in Ohio well underwater, and the polling showing a dead heat, this race may not be the slam dunk Ohio GOP leaders thought it was going in.
A Bowling Green State University poll released last week showed Ramaswamy with a statistically insignificant 1 point lead over Acton.
Robert Alexander, director of the Bowling Green poll, said that Ohio is clearly a “purple” state, with Ohio Democrats far more motivated to vote this November that Ohio Republicans.
“Every sign is pointing to close races for governor and U.S. Senate in Ohio,” Alexander said. “President Trump is generally unpopular, Democrats are far more enthusiastic, and the economy is a major concern for voters. Taken together, this midterm likely provides the best opportunity for Democrats to win statewide offices in 20 years.”
Phil Stein, Acton’s campaign manager, said in a written statement that Ramaswamy is “panicking.”
"He can continue throwing money at his campaign from the seat of his private jet, but Ohioans see right through his false promises," Stein said. “We’re building a grassroots campaign powered by supporters from every corner of this state.”
Ramaswamy’s campaign has not responded to requests for comment.
He and his patrons in the Ohio Republican Party may be about to find out that, in Ohio, there are things more important than how much money you can throw around.
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