A ticket to the Buckeye State general election for governor has been obtained by a former senior Trump ally in Washington who moved back to his home state.
The GOP’s nominee for governor of Ohio is Vivek Ramaswamy, who rose to national prominence as an anti-woke activist prior to his 2024 presidential campaign.
Shortly after the voting closed on Tuesday night, the Associated Press announced the race for Ramaswamy.
Ramaswamy is not your average Republican. He is a Hindu first-generation American who was raised by Indian immigrants in Cincinnati, Ohio, and made his fortune in investment banking and hedge funds.
He has struggled to win over evangelical Christian conservatives who usually support the GOP, and it is unclear if they will support him in November.
Ramaswamy’s general election opponent will be Amy Acton, who oversaw the Ohio Department of Health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since 2006, no Democrat has been elected governor of Ohio.
Republicans, meanwhile, are a little concerned that Ramaswamy’s candidacy would cause problems for the party running for governor in a state that Trump won by 11 points in 2024.
“Thank you, fans of Vivek.” Before the votes were counted on Tuesday, Derek Yohe, a self-described Christian from Ohio, posted on X, “You surrendered our state to the left.”
Speaking at the Warren County Republicans Lincoln Day Dinner at the Great Wolf Lodge in Mason, Ohio on Friday, April 10, 2026, Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy
During the primary election on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy casts his ballot at the Burbank Early Childhood School in Columbus, Ohio.
After casting his ballot at his Columbus, Ohio, polling station on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks and records into his phone.
Former Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz noted on X that “the Ohio backslide is a big story” and published the Polymarket odds that indicate Democrats would win the general election.
According to self-described Ohio conservative Evan Kilgore, “Vivek is now probably going to get his a** whooped by Amy Acton.” “Ohio is turning blue.” I detest having to acknowledge it.
Ramaswamy stated that he doesn’t think Jesus is “the” son of God in a video recording that leaked earlier this month. This might further jeopardise the Republicans’ chances and discourage evangelicals from supporting him in November.
Can Ramaswamy win over doubtful evangelical voters come November and bring Ohio’s split GOP together?
Ramaswamy was ahead of Acton by one point, 48 percent to 47 percent, according to a Bowling Green State University survey. Acton outperformed Ramaswamy by 46% to 45%, according to a Quantus Insights survey.
The Republican Governors’ Association Chair, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte, praised Ramaswamy’s victory while criticising Acton, saying that she “will treat taxpayers like an open chequebook, implementing the same failed tax-and-spend policies that led to crushing inflation and smaller pay cheques.”
On Tuesday, Vice President JD Vance, who lives in Ohio, travelled to the state to vote with his son, Vivek.
Vance declared his support for “Vivek Ramaswamy for Governor, Jay Edwards for State Treasurer, and Eric Conroy for Congress (OH-1)” in a post on X from his personal account.
“I hope you’ll do the same, Ohio!” he added, urging his followers to emulate him.
On May 5, 2026, in Cincinnati, Ohio, US Vice President JD Vance and his son Vivek cast their ballots in the state’s primary election at a polling place at St. Anthony of Padua Maronite Catholic Church. Before travelling to Iowa to give a speech at a Des Moines industrial site, Vance made a stop in Ohio to cast his ballot in the state’s primary election.
On Tuesday, May 5, 2026, Vice President JD Vance and his son Vivek disembark from Air Force Two after landing at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport in Hebron, Kentucky. Before moving on to Oklahoma and Iowa, Vance is making a stop in Ohio to cast his ballot in the state’s primary election.
Even while Trump handily won the state in his three elections, as of Tuesday night, Kalshi and Polymarket assigned Democrats a better than 50% probability of winning in November.
After leaving his position at DOGE last year, Ramaswamy, a former presidential candidate, entered the governor’s campaign. When Governor Mike DeWine selected his lieutenant governor, he changed his plans from being appointed to Vance’s seat in the US Senate to running for governor.
The reappearance of former US Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat who lost his most recent election in 2024, will be another significant element at work in the state.
The state’s previous lieutenant governor, Republican Senator John Husted, was appointed to the US Senate seat left vacant by now-Vice President JD Vance. Brown is running for the Senate again.
In a campaign that may be crucial to the attempt to recapture the US Senate from GOP control, Brown wants to return the seat to Democratic control. At the moment, Republicans control 53 seats in the upper house of Congress.
