At an Ohio deli, GOP voters shrug at controversy over Ramaswamy ad
Illustration: Press Pass USADevouring Reubens and potato pancakes, Republican voters who came to see Ohio governor candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on Saturday, October 24, had one message: they don't care about his controversial ad attacking Democrat Amy Acton. They're more worried about “socialism.”
Ramaswamy and other Republicans on the ballot stopped at Izzy's Deli in Monroe, in suburban Cincinnati, as part of a weekend bus tour. Around 100 people packed into the local deli chain, which boasts the “World's Greatest Reuben.” Attendees told The Enquirer that, at the top of their minds, are securing the country's borders, bringing jobs to Ohio, and defending the country from socialist candidates — not the campaign ad.
Ramaswamy has faced criticism from a number of Republicans for running an ad featuring his Democratic opponent's estranged mother calling her a liar. Acton and her mother have been estranged since 1978, after Acton's stepfather was charged with sexually abusing her. Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine condemned the ad and called on Ramaswamy to take it down, as did former Ohio Republican Gov. John Kasich. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance defended it.
“Dirty politics is dirty politics,” said George Kochanowski, 72, who drove from Springboro to meet Ramaswamy and Senate candidate Jon Husted. But the ad continues to divide other voters: CNN reported that more moderate and independent voters said they were bothered by it, and that it changes how they see the GOP nominee — a question that could decide the governor's race in a state Trump won by 11 percentage points in 2024, with the election on November 3.
Sources: Cincinnati Enquirer (Oct 24, 2026); CNN (Oct 24, 2026).
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