Ohio Republicans are staring at the kind of late-campaign controversy strategists dread: one entirely of their own making.
Vivek Ramaswamy’s decision to feature Democratic gubernatorial rival Amy Acton’s estranged mother in a $4 million advertising push has triggered criticism from Republicans as well as Democrats, leaving party figures openly questioning whether the campaign has damaged itself with Election Day approaching.
One Republican strategist summed up the mood to TIME: “We’ve lost the plot.” Another went further: “We now deserve to lose this race.”
That panic is especially striking in Ohio, a state Republicans have carried comfortably in recent presidential elections. The problem is that Ramaswamy was hardly cruising before the controversy. A Marist poll conducted Oct. 15 to 18 had Acton leading 50% to 43% among likely voters, with a margin of error of 4.5 percentage points.
Still, Republicans clearly believed the race was recoverable. Now some are wondering whether their own nominee has made that job significantly harder.
‘We’ve Lost the Plot’ Meets an Angry Ohio Reddit Thread
The ad features Acton’s estranged mother criticizing her daughter, dragging an extraordinarily painful family history into the campaign. Acton has previously discussed childhood abuse, and her stepfather was indicted for raping her. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine called the advertisement “deeply, deeply troubling” and urged Ramaswamy to pull it. Sen. Jon Husted has also distanced himself from the tactic, while Vice President J.D. Vance defended Ramaswamy against Republican criticism.
Over on Ohio’s subreddit, sympathy for Republicans was considerably harder to find.
The thread provided here was overwhelmingly anti-Republican and should not be confused with a representative sample of Ohio voters. But as a snapshot of hostile local reaction, it was brutal.
One highly upvoted commenter declared: “Every single GOP candidate deserves to lose for the next 100 years for inflicting MAGA on the country and the world.” Another argued, “People keep thinking this will move the needle. It will not.”
That contrast may be the real headache for Republicans. The most committed Democratic voters were hardly waiting for this advertisement to make up their minds. The danger is elsewhere: independents, undecided voters and Republicans who dislike the tactic.
Ramaswamy’s campaign is betting millions that the ad changes minds in its favor. His Republican critics are warning it may achieve exactly the opposite. With voting already underway, there is precious little room left to discover which side read Ohio correctly.
