Vivek Ramaswamy is bad publicity: Ohio venues cancel campaign events amid backlash over ad featuring Amy Acton's mother; people leave one-star review on Google

Several venues in Ohio have withdrawn from hosting campaign events featuring Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy as backlash intensifies over an advertisement targeting his Democratic rival, Amy Acton, and featuring her estranged mother. The cancellations come days before the November 3 midterm elections, as Ramaswamy faces criticism from Democrats and fellow Republicans over the campaign advertisement.

The Old Dog Ale House & Brewery in Delaware, Ohio, cancelled a Republican campaign event featuring Ramaswamy on Friday, according to USA Today reporter Jessie Balmert. The Ohio Republican Party said it had selected a new location for the event. Other businesses and event hosts have also reconsidered hosting Ramaswamy's campaign tour at their venues as people are leaving one-star reviews for these sites on Google. “We’re getting calls that people don’t want him there,” a top Ohio Republican told Zeteo, a news website founded by Mehdi Hasan. The report claimed that some business owners explicitly said that they don't want public anger.

Elliot's Wood Fired Kitchen in Newark said in the comments section of a recent Facebook post that it would not host the Ohio GOP's planned event on Tuesday, Newsweek reported. The Ohio Republican Party's bus tour website now lists the location of the event as "to be announced." Venues that already hosted GOP events over the weekend have received a wave of one-star Google reviews, including Kick-N-Ax in Zanesville, Izzy's in Monroe, and The Local Bar Strongsville. Some reviewers included photos of Ramaswamy at the venues.

Vivek Ramaswamy says his mother was also defamed

The controversy centres on a 60-second advertisement produced by Ramaswamy's campaign that features Acton's estranged mother, Donna Arthur, accusing her daughter of lying about her childhood and personal history. “I love my daughter, but when I saw her lying about her opponent—and it's not easy for a mother to say this—but Amy has a serious problem,” Arthur said in the advertisement. “She is a liar. She lies about her past. She says she grew up living in a tent. None of that is true. She's lied her entire life,” she said.

Acton, a former director of the Ohio Department of Health, has spoken publicly about experiencing childhood abuse and homelessness. Her brother, Philip Stearns, has defended her account of their childhood and criticized Ramaswamy for using the family's history in a political advertisement. Arthur lost custody of her children decades ago after her husband, Cledith Arthur, was charged with sexually abusing Acton when she was a child. He pleaded not guilty, was indicted by a grand jury and subsequently failed to appear in court. He later died. Acton has said she has not spoken to her mother since she was 12 years old.

The advertisement has prompted criticism from prominent Republicans, including Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, who urged Ramaswamy's campaign to stop airing it. “It's wrong to run this ad,” DeWine said, describing it as “deeply, deeply troubling”. Ramaswamy said he did not start the fight, but he is finishing it after he found himself in this fight. He said his mother was also defamed to media silence.