Vivek Ramaswamy Trails Democrat Amy Acton in Two Ohio Governor Polls as Attack Ad Draws Backlash

WASHINGTON–Indian American Republican Vivek Ramaswamy is trailing Democratic opponent Amy Acton in two new polls of Ohio’s gubernatorial race, with surveys suggesting that his campaign’s controversial advertisement featuring Acton’s estranged mother may be hurting his chances ahead of the November 3 election.

A Suffolk University/USA TODAY Network Ohio poll released Wednesday showed Acton leading Ramaswamy 48% to 44%, while Libertarian candidate Don Kissick received 4% support. Another 3% of likely voters remained undecided.

Although Ramaswamy has narrowed the gap from September, when the same poll showed Acton leading 50% to 41%, the latest findings indicate that his campaign’s negative advertising strategy has not produced the intended results.

The survey found that 72% of likely voters had seen or heard about an advertisement featuring Acton’s estranged mother. However, fewer than 1% said the advertisement persuaded them to switch their support from Acton to Ramaswamy.

Meanwhile, 2% of respondents familiar with the advertisement said they had previously supported Ramaswamy but now favored Acton.

The poll also found that voters viewed Ramaswamy’s campaign as significantly more negative than his opponent’s.

Half of likely voters, or 50%, said Ramaswamy had conducted the more negative campaign, compared with 15% who said the same about Acton.

Among respondents who had seen the controversial advertisement, 59% identified Ramaswamy as the candidate running the more negative campaign, while just 13% pointed to Acton.

In Portage County, which Suffolk University monitors as a political bellwether, the candidates were tied at 47% each.

A separate private survey commissioned by an unidentified Republican organization suggested an even larger advantage for Acton.

According to Axios, the internal poll of 800 likely voters, conducted October 23-26, showed Acton leading Ramaswamy 50% to 42%.

That represented a widening of Acton’s advantage from an earlier survey conducted by the same polling organization, which had placed her ahead 47% to 45%.

The internal poll had a margin of error of 3.46 percentage points.

A memorandum accompanying the survey indicated that the advertisement featuring Acton’s mother was influencing voter sentiment.

The ad “is having a significant effect on the gubernatorial race,” the memorandum stated, according to Axios.

The survey found that 86% of respondents had encountered information about the advertisement. Among those familiar with it, voters said by a 2-to-1 margin that it made them more likely to support Acton.

Axios also reported that Ramaswamy’s campaign had committed approximately $4 million to broadcasting the advertisement across Ohio.

“The candidate is the one pushing for it,” a source familiar with the campaign told Axios.

A representative for Ramaswamy’s campaign declined to comment to the publication.

Ramaswamy has defended the advertisement, maintaining that Acton has misrepresented aspects of her personal history.

As the election approaches, the former Republican presidential candidate has also sought to shift attention toward economic concerns, particularly property taxes.

On Thursday, Ramaswamy announced a proposed executive order that he said he would issue immediately upon taking office to investigate substantial property tax increases in Ohio communities.

“This morning I announced my Day 1 Executive Order to investigate localities where property taxes have doubled since the pandemic, to give the public transparency that they deserve,” Ramaswamy wrote on X.

He also criticized Acton’s campaign practices, describing her as “the candidate who bans recordings at her events & refuses to debate”.

Despite his efforts to refocus the campaign, polling averages continue to show Acton holding a narrow advantage.

As of Thursday, the FiftyPlusOne polling average placed Acton at 48.2% support, compared with 45.2% for Ramaswamy.

Ramaswamy, whose parents immigrated to the United States from Kerala, is seeking to become Ohio’s first Indian American governor.

The entrepreneur and former Republican presidential contender has emerged as a prominent figure in the Republican Party and has received the endorsement of President Donald Trump.

With Election Day scheduled for November 3, the latest surveys suggest Ramaswamy faces a competitive race in which voter reactions to campaign advertising and concerns about economic issues could influence the final outcome. (Source: IANS)