In blue states and in federal elections, we all know by now that when a Democrat runs for office, campaigning is optional. They’d much rather conserve their money and resources for their closed-loop voter “registration,” and ballot counting and harvesting operations.
But in red states, Democrats still have to make a go of it. They have to campaign, because, you know, democracy and all that. Ohio is a red state, and there are two people vying to succeed term-limited Mike DeWine (R) in the governor’s mansion. They are Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican in the race and a close associate of President Donald Trump; and Amy Acton, a medical doctor who has spent the bulk of her career in public health in various capacities. She’s the Democrat.
Recent polling, conducted by CNN, reveals that Acton has an eight-point advantage over Ramaswamy, 50% to 42%. But don’t expect that to last. As we’ve covered just recently, pollsters like to shape opinion with their polls instead of reflecting it. As we get closer to Election Day, expect those gaps to soon close, and the polls to become more accurate, because pollsters don’t want to be accused after the election of getting it wrong.
If Acton had a reliably commanding lead over Ramaswamy, and she wasn’t in danger of losing a close race, it would be entirely appropriate for her to take a pass on debating her opponent. Why take the risk when you have little to gain and a lot to lose?
But Acton is not in “comfortable lead” territory just yet, and she likely never will be. That means it would really be to her advantage to take to the debate stage with Ramaswamy, but she refuses to do that.
Now, both Acton and Ramaswamy are very smart people. You’d think both candidates would want to face off against each other prior to Election Day.
But the Acton campaign has already rejected the opportunity to debate Ramaswamy. The campaign told the media that Ramaswamy’s attack ads against her were inaccurate.
If disputes over attack ads’ accuracy were valid reasons for avoiding a political debate, there would be no political debates at all in America, so that can’t be it. That can’t be the reason Acton is avoiding a debate with Ramaswamy. Do you think it might have something to do with her debate competency? Do you think she’s afraid he’ll mop the floor with her? Let’s explore that.
This clip is widely regarded as the moment Ramaswamy wrecked Nikki Haley’s hopes to become president one day.
Vivek Ramaswamy: "One thing that Joe Biden and Nikki Haley have in common is that neither of them could even state for you three provinces in eastern Ukraine that they want to send our troops to actually fight for." https://t.co/ENGL3H0j8T
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) December 7, 2023
Compare that to this. It's Acton speaking without a script.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN AMY ACTON TALKS WITHOUT A SCRIPT… Suddenly, the cameras seem to disappear. Maybe Ohio voters deserve candidates who can speak openly, answer tough questions, and explain their positions without a script or handlers. Listen now! #debate #amy #vivek https://t.co/ZxBFM1pp4S
— Ashtabula County GOP (@ashtabulacounty) October 10, 2026
Okay, maybe I’m being unfair. Maybe I can find another clip where Acton is buttoned down and ready to engage.
This is Acton giving one of her official stump speeches on the campaign trail.
🚨 Amy Acton just completely lost it on stage chanting "You can't buy Ohiooooo!" like an unhinged activist. This leftist democrat is WAY too fake and extreme for Ohio, and it's no surprise she's terrified to debate Vivek Ramaswamy. Keep Ohio RED! 🔴🇺🇸 https://t.co/Swg6fpH7KJ
— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) September 5, 2026
Yikes. Wait just one second. I think I found a clip worth watching. Here’s her campaign's political director right now, stepping to the microphone.
Hmmm? 🤨 Jordan Hawkins, the political director for Ohio democrat gubernatorial candidate Amy Action speaking at one of her campaign rallies. He tells the crowd that video and audio recordings are not allowed. Still pictures only. https://t.co/B8wO5Qmp7G
— DKelly 🇺🇸🦅🇺🇸 (@1Nicdar) October 6, 2026
Wait. What? Did he just say that at an official campaign event, you can only take still pictures, but no video or audio recording? Did he really say, "We don't love video" of his own candidate? Did he say the quiet part out loud?
Okay, I think we’ve hit on something. It looks like the Acton campaign is afraid to put its candidate on stage with Ramaswamy because he might just destroy her and any chance she has of winning this race. So, the campaign is doing its version of “taking the Fifth.” The Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, as you know, protects a person’s right not to be compelled to incriminate oneself. In other words, Acton has the right to remain silent, and she's exercising that right as a campaign strategy.
Can you imagine running for governor of one of the 50 states in the union, when the only way you have a shot at winning is if you take your campaign handlers’ advice and just shut up?
Local Ohio news site Mahoning Matters talked to University of Akron political scientist David Cohen, who said, “Amy Acton and Vivek Ramaswamy have never held elected office… For a lot of people, (a debate) would be their first way to get eyeballs on them and to be able to make an assessment of how effective a leader they would be for the state of Ohio.”
But Acton is working to avoid that scenario at all costs.
Cohen added, “It’s the only opportunity that the voters get to see the candidates on the same stage and to measure them against one another.”
League of Women Voters of Ohio was nonplussed by Acton’s decision as well. The league’s Jen Miller said in a statement: “A healthy democracy relies on informed and engaged voters… Voters should have meaningful opportunities to hear directly from candidates beyond scripted appearances and political ads.”
Meanwhile, the Acton campaign has doubled down on its decision not to risk putting its candidate on the debate stage, throwing in, for good measure, Acton’s victimhood bona fides. On September 2, campaign manager Phil Stein is quoted in an official campaign statement saying:
Dr. Acton’s focus is on 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. 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.
I'm not saying any of this isn’t true, but have Acton and her campaign ever watched the movie Hillbilly Elegy, the hardscrabble story of JD Vance?
Not only didVance have a tough childhood, but he was also the subject of smears and inaccurate campaign ads. And yet, he’s always found time to debate his political opponents.
JD Vance correctly calls out Tim Walz for his anti free speech comments. “There's no guarantee to free speech” - Tim Walz https://t.co/nfuryzip2w
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) October 2, 2024
All of this points to a reasonable assumption that Acton refuses to debate Ramaswamy because she knows she will lose. He’s already proven he can trade rhetorical blows with the biggest heavyweights in politics, and it's likely she's afraid that this Vivek will show up on the debate stage, and it will be lights out.
Vivek Ramaswamy said to Chris Christie what everyone watching the debate is thinking. https://t.co/C6C3AcRbIw
— Ian Miles (@ianmiles) December 7, 2023
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