Posted on 09/06/2026 12:02:01 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican
Dr. Amy Acton, a Democrat running unopposed in her party's primary for Ohio governor, faces some steep challenges in the coming general election.
She is trying to be the first Democrat in 20 years to win the office in a state that has become dominated by Republicans. Her presumed opponent, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, has national name recognition and a personal fortune that he is plowing into his campaign.
But Acton's most formidable obstacle may be a ghost from her recent past: the COVID-19 pandemic.
Acton, a physician, was Ohio's public health director when the coronavirus hit the United States in early 2020, causing a wave of deaths, anxiety and social disruption. As the government took aggressive action to combat it, Acton became a household name throughout Ohio.
Six years later, the orders Acton signed at the urging of Republican Gov. Mike DeWine to battle the virus — closing schools, shuttering businesses, restricting sporting events and suspending voting in the 2020 primary — are drawing fresh attention as she runs for the state's top office and have become a central line of criticism from Republicans.
During campaign rallies, Ramaswamy has accused Acton of spreading dangerous "COVID ideology." Her campaign said it does not think voters will buy it.
"Dr. Acton is proud of the work she did alongside Governor DeWine to put public health over politics, save lives and keep Ohioans safe," her campaign spokesperson, Addie Bullock, said in a statement. "It is unfortunate that Vivek Ramaswamy wants to play politics on this issue."
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
The exact opposite of what happened.
I’d forgotten DeWine was such a RINO during the PlanDemic.
> Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, has national name recognition and a personal fortune <
Kinda reminds of Republican Dr. Oz, who ran for the PA senate back in 2022. He lost to Democrat John Fetterman.
I’ve got no evidence to prove it. And Oz was a terrible candidate in his own right. But I’m guessing that at least a few voters picked John Fetterman over Mehmet Oz mainly because of Oz’s “foreigner” name.
Just sayin’.
Side point: I grew up in a community made up of mostly Eastern European immigrants, and their children. Some folks there would vote for a person *because* of their “foreign” last name. So there you go.
Some people might have voted against Acton due to her covid era actions, but when they see that her opponent is a pro H1B-visa Indian, they might lose motivation.
“But Acton’s most formidable obstacle may be a ghost from her recent past: the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Wow! Voters may actually determine how to vote based on what a candidate has actually done!
Thousands of Ohio seniors died lonesome deaths bec of Acton’s rubber stamping CDC’s isolation n 6feet of distance tripe.
Seniors died w No Family, No Friends, maybe a kind nurse w a minute in their final moments. Or a housekeeping worker holding their hand as they pass. So Sad!
COVID is just the most obvious of a long line of errors where many highly educated people went along with the error.
Some people quickly see the error and respond with an alternative. Many honestly say “We do not know. We can only guess.”
Some “flat earth” people hold out til the bitter end.
There is objective TRUTH. But as St Paul quoted the Greeks “We see thru the glass darkly.” We are too proud to admit that “We don’t know” when that is often the truth.
It's going to be used virulently against Gruesome and Lil' Andy too. Both guilty of state-applied censorship (directives from both governors to Jack-era Twitter for both takedowns and bans, all exist on the record).
But more incisively, both directly, criminally guilty of Maoist crackdowns on the Free Exercise of Religion.
Gruesome may get by it on other terms, or not; but Lil's Andy's COVID reichskrieg renders Numbnuts null and void.
Quarantine the sick. Not healthy people.
Everything is backwards now. Everything.
Acton comes off as a low iq clown with a wine box problem. Seen many of her kind over the years. In over her head. Her exaggerated story of living in a tent is a real tear jerker. She’s using the Biden basement strategy because Ranswammy would wipe the floor with her. You may not like the color of his skin or his name but the choice is clear. I would take an accomplished businessman over a lush with a skirt.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.