Two decades after the election of its last candidate, the Democratic Party finally managed to lead a representative to victory for the governorship of the state of Ohio, in the Midwest of the United States.
Amy Acton, 60, had her victory projected on Tuesday (3) as the new leader of the state — known for being a pendulum in disputes. The result follows the general trend of these midterm elections, in which Democrats achieved a historic upset in the House and Senate, threatening the next years of the Trump administration.
Acton's campaign was marked by many attacks and mobilization on the networks. However, one thing stood out: an ad involving his own mother, Donna Arthur, spread across social media and television as a political advertisement for the Republican candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy.
"It's not easy for a mother to say this, but Amy has a serious problem," says the birth mother in the campaign ad. "She's a liar. [...] She lied all her life."
Acton's mother's accusations date back many years before the election. The governor-elect became estranged from her biological mother decades ago after her stepfather, Cledith "Bud" Arthur, was accused of sexually abusing her from the age of 9 to 12.
Bud was indicted by the local grand jury after the girl's biological father, Gerald Stearns, discovered the rape cases and reported him to the police in 1978. The stepfather fled the state with Donna Arthur before being tried and was never prosecuted, remaining on the run from justice for 26 years, until his death in 2004, in Pennsylvania.
According to the Democratic campaign, the last time Acton saw his biological mother in person was in court in 1978, after his stepfather was formally charged. The candidate spoke about the attack, condemning her rival's attitude.
"I'm not going to treat as normal someone who said my childhood is just something I'm complaining about, someone who just released an ad today using my biological mother, from whose custody I was removed at age 12 for severe abuse and neglect and sexual abuse," she told Spectrum News, an Ohio cable news channel.
In response to the published video, the Democratic campaign released a video statement from Acton's brother, Philip Stearns. In the play, he claims that his older sister bore "the worst part" of the abuse she suffered as a child to protect him, criticizing Ramaswamy and his allies for exploiting the situation.
"I've had a lot of attacks, but Amy always got the worst of it," says Philip.
The advertisement featuring the candidate's biological mother backfired on the Republican campaign. Public opinion immediately condemned the way Ramaswamy took advantage of the trauma of a victim of child abuse — including among his own conservative support base and some Republican representatives.
The outrage led to the suspension of the advertisement in the final stretch of the campaign. The commercial did not directly indicate that it was a campaign-financed piece, despite the Republican candidate taking responsibility for the piece the day after it was published.
Connie Luck, a spokeswoman for the Republican campaign, said $4 million was spent to boost the video, which was intended, she said, to show how Acton "has serious problems with the truth that the public needs to be aware of." According to the spokeswoman, Donna Arthur did not receive a fee for her participation.
President Donald Trump took a stand in defense of the attitude, praising Arthur and Ramaswamy's action and attributing the campaign's bad impact to the press.
"[He must] let everyone hear the mother of a flawed, dishonest and incapable candidate explain how her daughter is a disaster who lies, cheats and steals uncontrollably!", said the president on his Truth Social account.
"I just wish the mothers of my opponents would be brave enough to come forward and explain that their son or daughter is a liar and much worse."
In addition to Trump's speech, Vice President J. D. Vance also spoke out by saying that he would like his Republican colleagues to "stop whining" over the announcement. He said he was "a little disgusted" by the criticism from members of his own party.
Amy's biological father gained full custody of his daughter and raised her for the remainder of her young life. She often credits her father as the "hero who saved her life," ensuring that she attended school and participated in local projects that sharpened her political views.
With a medical degree, Amy gained national prominence in 2019 when she was appointed director of the state Department of Health, leading the initial response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
She had never run for any office before the election. Initial polls indicated Ramaswamy's victory, in the state that had been experiencing a conservative turn in recent years.
