Amy Acton says she has “no intention” of speaking to Ramaswamy after “terrible and despicable” campaign ad

November 6, 2026 / 9:31 AM EST / CBS News

Ohio's Democratic Gov.-elect Amy Acton said Friday that she has "no intention" of speaking to Vivek Ramaswamy, her Republican opponent in the governor's race, after he ran what she called a "terrible and despicable" ad featuring her estranged mother.

In her first TV interview on "CBS Mornings," Acton was asked whether she had spoken to Ramaswamy since she defeated him in Tuesday's election. Ramaswamy said during his concession speech that he called Acton and left her a message to congratulate her on her win.

"I have no intention of speaking to him," Acton said. "I do believe that leaders' words matter, and we need to hold folks accountable."

The Ohio governor's race garnered heightened national attention in the final days of the campaign when Ramaswamy ran an attack ad featuring Acton's estranged mother, Donna Arthur, who called her daughter a "liar." But Acton had not seen Arthur since she was 12 years old.

Acton and her brother had been removed from their mother's care after their stepfather, Cledith Arthur was arrested and charged with raping Acton when she was between 10 and 12 years old. Acton's brother said that their…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/entertainment/