In 2026, there are two major candidates running for Ohio governor that would make history if they won.
On the Republican side, the leading candidate endorsed by the Ohio Republican Party and President Trump is an entrepreneur and former presidential candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy, who is of Indian descent.
And on the Democratic side is Dr. Amy Acton, a physician who served as the former director of the Ohio Department of Health and would be the first woman elected governor if she wins.
We reached out to both of these candidates to discuss lessons learned from this year’s General Election, and the race ahead. We recorded a conversation with Dr. Amy Acton on Nov.10. And we're still in conversation with Ramaswamy's campaign, hoping to secure an interview soon.
Below is a transcript from a portion of the interview between “Sound of Ideas” host Stephanie Haney and Dr. Amy Acton. You can hear the full interview in the YouTube player at the top of the page.
Stephanie Haney: What is it that you take away from what happened in this November election, when we saw two Democratic women making history that was in Virginia and New Jersey, with those governor wins.
Dr. Amy Acton: Well, it was an historic night. It was exciting to watch not just these amazing two women governors elected, but also locally. I was spending election night in Cincinnati. I had spent the day going to different poll locations and finally wrapped up in the headquarters when Aftab won Mayor Aftab Pureval. And I can tell you that what I was hearing all night was school boards were flipping in directions that people were thrilled about. I heard the same thing in Youngstown and other parts of the state. I think a lot of folks are ready for change, and they want to see public servants again. People who actually solve problems instead of making them.
Stephanie Haney: In Virginia and New Jersey, both of those women won in blue or purple leaning states. Now, Ohio has been trending redder and redder. So, what is it about the state right now that makes you see a path to winning the governorship in Ohio?
Dr. Amy Acton: You know, actually, I've been going everywhere around Ohio for almost two years now, listening deeply everywhere I go. And we've been seeing record crowds of folks. And it doesn’t have to do with party. I can't say this enough. Ohio is a very independent thinking state. We actually have very high numbers of independents. And that's why you see something like Obama win then Trump win. And what I am actually hearing from people on the ground, and that's what I think we saw in these more local elections in Ohio last Tuesday, is that people are wanting change. You know, people are overwhelmed from the chaos and the vitriol and all the things that we've been seeing going on, and they're really wondering why no one is dealing with costs and affordability and the issues they face in their everyday life. You know, Ohioans are talking about things like what you and I probably feel our energy bills going up. They're talking about gas and groceries, but they're talking about childcare and housing being affordable and being able to age in place with dignity.
You know, I see Ohio. You know, obviously we've been very gerrymandered. So, we have this sense that we're this very divided state. But when I'm on the ground, I'm seeing a lot of Ohioans, probably speaking, mostly of the same things.
Stephanie Haney: When we do think about party identity, though, you know, you're running as the Democratic candidate. And right now, the only person declared in the Democratic side of things. Is there something different than you do that you do to try to appeal to the Republicans and the Independent identified voters, or is it the same?
Dr. Amy Acton: Well, I would say I'm running the same way. I would always run and solve problems. You know, I'm a doctor. I'm not a lifelong politician. I'm certainly not a pundit on all of the things that have happened in our state. But I know Ohioans a little differently. A bond formed from something we went through together and that bond doesn't seem to know party. What I'm seeing are everyday Ohioans longing for public servants again who actually do the work and make our lives better.
Stephanie Haney: Let's talk about that bond. You know, you came to a lot of people's attention in your role as a director of Ohio Department of Health during the pandemic, and, you know, a lot of people found you to be a steady voice during that time.
And since that time, we have seen a lot of backlash and skepticism about mask and vaccine mandates, especially from people on the right. So, what do you say to voters who may have soured on the medical establishment in the years since then?
Dr. Amy Acton: Well, I can tell you that that is not what I'm hearing on the ground. Again, we keep seeing these record crowds of folks showing up. And, you know, what we talk about is, you know, specifically to Covid. You know, I'm very proud of what happened in the state. I was part of the early emergency response. And, you know, we put people and lives and getting people back to their lives and jobs above politics. And I'm very proud to have been a part of that. You know, Ohioans, we flattened the curve in Ohio. We saved a lot of lives. And we opened and got back to life a lot quicker because we took swift and decisive action.
You know, as a leader, you know, the way I lead is a little bit, you know, something I've done my whole career, which is I put the hard cards on the table and I think it's so important, the kinds of problems we're facing, whether it be property taxes or housing tax, being able to know the ground you stand on. I very much trust Ohioans, and I think they really trusted me because I put the hard cards on the table and asked a little more of us. You know, that's what it’s going to take to lead our state. We're going backwards on nearly every measure. I'm running because people in this state are struggling. They're doing everything right. But special interests and bad actors in our statehouse keep taking us backwards on every measure in the state.
Stephanie Haney: Let's bring it back to present day. Now in the November election, you know, Abigail Spanberger will be Virginia's first female governor, also flipped Virginia from a Republican governor to a Democratic one. And there's an AP voter, a poll recently that said 40% of registered voters in New Jersey and Virginia said they cast their ballots in opposition to President Trump. So how much do you think this election and next year's will be decided by what happens on a federal level?
Dr. Amy Acton: You know, I am very, very laser focused on Ohio and our Statehouse. I keep telling folks, you know, we pay attention to federal. We pay attention to local. But the Statehouse is where a lot of the bad things are happening. And until we fix our state and get good leaders and there are good leaders, quite frankly, on both sides of the aisle who are really there to do the work of the people, it doesn't get better for Ohio.
Now, you know, my opponent, you know very much I feel has no sense of these everyday issues we're facing. You know, about costs, about affordability, about, you know, our educational system in this state. And I know the president just said something like, costs are not the issue. But I can tell you from what I am hearing from Ohioans, affordability is the number one issue facing Ohioans. And we need leaders who are going to do something about it. And, you know, I'm running against an opponent who said recklessly like, eliminate all property taxes.
But we all know that property taxes have gone up because our Statehouse has been failing us. They cut the local funds, they've cut funding our food banks, our mental health programs, you know, our addiction services. They've cut so many things. And then therefore, the local community has had to raise revenue. Somehow, we actually have to do a comprehensive look at our entire tax policy, and we have to give immediate relief to people with things like the Homestead Exemption Act right now, because we have people aging in the homes they've been in their whole lives, and they just can't keep up.
You know, just last week, I was in Portage County at a food bank. We had 400 cars come through a food bank, and 65 cars were still waiting, and we ran out of food. People are feeling this. This is real. You know, I had a really rough childhood. I've lived a lot of these issues of not having enough to eat, of living in a tent in the winter, of not having the heat turned on. And I understand what this is like. And what I'm up against is a self-funding billionaire who wants to do the same failed policies that have hurt this state for so long. So, I'm laser focused on the people of Ohio, and I'm laser focused on this opponent because we really look like we can win this race and start to turn things around.
Stephanie Haney: Now, when you reference your opponent there, you're talking about Vivek Ramaswamy. He is the person who has been endorsed by the Ohio Republican Party as the main candidate who's running on the Republican side right now. And we are working to secure an interview with Vivek Ramasamy as well. But right now, you're the only declared Democratic candidate for Ohio governor. So how does that impact your approach to your campaign leading up to the primary in 2026?
Dr. Amy Acton: You know, I've been laser focused on people, and I can't say enough. I really believe what we're seeing now is people finding their way back to one another, not giving up on one another, and really trying to join arms, to push back on these extreme ideologies and special interests and culture wars and all the rest of it, that my opponent was very famous running for president on.
You know, I've been focused on things like victims, you know, we challenge our opponent to come out and do what he said he would do in the Epstein files. He said he would release someone. He was running for president. He's been silent. And I hope you and others ask him questions about the fact that he won't speak up about that.
Now, you know, as somebody again, who experienced abuse and neglect as a child and experienced this kind of abuse specifically. I've been fighting for victims my whole life. I think folks like this need to be accountable. If you're not going to stand up for the victims of the most heinous crimes we see, you're certainly not going to stand up against special interests for the rest of us.
Stephanie Haney: Sticking with talking about Candidate Ramaswamy right now, who previously ran for president, as you mentioned, and worked shortly with the Trump administration's DOGE Department. Following the GOP governor losses in New Jersey and Virginia, he mentioned Zohran Mamdani’s win as mayor in New York City, he said it provided two key lessons for the Republican Party. First, the Republicans need to focus on affordability.
And second, that Republicans need to cut out identity politics and emphasize that Republicans don't care about the color of your skin or your religion. So, what do you think about that approach from Ramaswamy?
Dr. Amy Acton: Well, as somebody who has been running for two years focused on the needs of Ohioans, I don't find it credible that he is saying this as somebody who literally ran a presidential campaign based on culture wars and pitting people against one another.
I can't tell you enough. Everywhere I go, people are exhausted. That's why we're seeing the record numbers. And the polling is absolutely showing that we are far ahead of my opponent and Independents. And we're seeing a lot of Republicans crossing over because they, too, have been listening to his words all these years. And they too, know that he is actually doing the same failed policies and promoting the same things that actually got us in this mess. … And so I think it's very, very important that folks listen, deeply to the people of this state. We've been going everywhere. We've been going places. People, quite frankly, haven't been in a while. And that's why we're seeing these crowds that don't know party. I think people are longing for change. And when I say public servants again, you know, I can't say enough. Our job doing this, being governor, is to be for all people. It's to help all people feel safe. It's to help all people have a chance at a good life. My opponent literally took $10 million into a PAC from a guy named Yass in Philadelphia, whose sole goal is to end public schools as we know it.
Everywhere I go in Ohio, people are very alarmed. They want to see their public schools thrive. We invented public schools in Ohio. It was a compact. The state was going to be different in the Northwest Territory. When we topped up the blocks of land, every so many was for a public school because unlike the East Coast, unlike Europe, we were going to make sure everyone had that chance at an education. And literally we still haven't funded the bipartisan funding plan. My opponent has said literally out loud that he wants to end teachers’ unions. I was saved by public schools as a kid. I have the life I have and was able to overcome a lot because our schools and our libraries. I'm married to a 43-year public school, elementary school teacher and coach.
I don't think this is the kind of policy Ohioans want. And that's why I'm running for governor. I refuse to look the other way while bad actors keep selling us more of these failed policies.
Stephanie Haney: You mentioned the importance of the Statehouse when it comes to what we pay attention to. You know, we pay attention to the federal level, you say, and also the local level. But you say there's some bad things that are happening at the state level. So, you're going to be working with many of the leaders that you're fighting against right now. There is a clear majority of Republican power in the Ohio legislature. So how do you do that when you're working against that supermajority if you become governor?
Dr. Amy Acton: Well, I've been doing this work my entire career.
I'm almost 60 years old. I've worked with past governors as well, and obviously I was willing to work with a Republican governor. You never agree with anyone on every issue. But I work with anyone who wants to solve the problems of Ohioans. I worked with this president. I worked on uranium leaking in Piketon, Ohio. I worked with this legislature on a number of issues, so much so that even while they were pushing back on some things during Covid, I was receiving well-wishes and notes and flowers from people. The thing is, we're going to have to work and we've got a lot of work to do. Winning is just the beginning of the task ahead. We didn't get here overnight. You know, we have to go after gerrymandering. I think 80% of Ohioans want to end gerrymandering. This was lawless language written last time. I worked with Maureen O'Connor and a bipartisan group of business leaders, all of Ohio, to end this.
We have to go after it in 2027. Again, if we don't get it, there, we go after it in the regular process, because these special interests are having such an influence on Statehouses. We need good people who want to serve and actually solve the problems of Ohioans. It's about people who actually want to do the work.
You can listen to the full interview with Dr. Amy Acton in the YouTube player above.
Transcript generated with the help of AI.
Guest:
Amy Acton, M.D., Democratic candidate for Ohio governor