JD Vance tells GOP to 'stop whining' about controversial Ramaswamy ad

Scott Wartman and Matthew Cupelli, Cincinnati EnquirerWed, October 21, 2026 at 5:42 PM UTC

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SYCAMORE TOWNSHIP, OH – Vice President JD Vance told Republicans to "stop whining" about a controversial ad by the Vivek Ramaswamy campaign featuring the mother of his Democratic opponent in the race for Ohio governor.

"Politics is a tough business," Vance said during a press conference Oct. 21 at the Cincinnati FBI field office. "I’m a little bit disgusted when I see Republicans who are whining more about that advertisement" than who will win the race for Ohio governor.

When asked about the ad, Vance wouldn't say whether the ad was appropriate.

"Whether the ad was appropriate or not is not really my concern," he said. "What is my concern is who's going to govern the next generation of American government. Who is going to win the Senate race in the state of Ohio, who is going to win the governor's race in the state of Ohio."

What reaction has the ad sparked?

The ad, shared across social media, featured the estranged mother of Ramaswamy's Democratic opponent, Dr. Amy Acton, strongly criticizing her daughter.

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Acton has been estranged from their mother, Donna Stearns Arthur, since 1978, when her stepfather, Cledith Arthur, faced a rape charge for sexually abusing 12-year-old Acton. The ad has come under harsh criticism from both sides of the aisle. Acton's brother, Philip Stearns, released a statement saying he and his sister were removed from her mom's custody and that their mother "stayed married to Amy's rapist until he died."

“It’s not surprising that Vivek Ramaswamy has stooped to such a despicable low as to attempt to turn the sexual abuse Amy endured at 12 years old from our birth mother's husband into a political talking point,” Stearns said in the statement.

Ramaswamy has said his campaign produced the ad but he wouldn't say whether it would air on television.

"Every person who appears to know her the best – her former boss, her former colleagues in state government, even the doctors in this state, the Ohio State Medical Association – have told voters not to vote for her but to vote for me instead," Ramaswamy told the USA TODAY Ohio Statehouse Bureau. "This is a pattern of someone else who appears to know her well, who says the same thing, and I do think that's important for voters to take all of that into account, especially because Amy Acton has hid from debate and ducked questions."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: JD Vance tells GOP to 'stop whining' about controversial Ramaswamy ad

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