Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican frontrunner for governor in the 2026 election, has spent much of his summer schmoozing local and national Republican groups and glomming on to hot topics in conservative media circles.
This week in Columbus, he unveiled what he described as his top five policy priorities if he is elected to replace Gov. Mike DeWine.
Those priorities are:
- Reversing the exodus of young people in Ohio by eliminating the state income tax and bringing down property taxes.
- Increasing energy production by promoting fracking and new nuclear plants,
- Improving kids’ performance in K-12 schools.
- “Ending the crisis of urban crime” (Ramaswamy said this could be done by increasing penalties for repeat criminal offenders, including possibly sending them to psychiatric institutions.)
- “Restoring a positive culture of open dialogue” (Ramaswamy didn’t say how he planned to do so but repeated a story about inviting a protester outside an event in Wayne County to join him inside. He also said the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk provides an opportunity for reflection. )
Ramaswamy announced the platform during an event in which he and U.S. Sen. Jon Husted officially endorsed each other in next year’s election. Both have gotten endorsements from the state party and President Donald Trump and neither face serious opposition.
Amy Acton campaign says Ohio Statehouse ‘caters to billionaires’
We also asked Dr. Amy Acton, the Democratic candidate for governor, about her platform.
“Amy’s top priority is lowering costs for Ohioans by easing the burden of everyday expenses like groceries, gas, healthcare, energy bills and more,” said Phil Stein, Acton’s campaign manager. “She is committed to fully funding public schools, strengthening Ohio’s economy, improving public safety and cracking down on the rampant corruption in Ohio’s Statehouse that caters to billionaires and special interests.”
Ex-COVID teammates could headline 2026 elections
Monday’s Ramaswamy event also offered a preview of the mental gymnastics Republicans will have to perform next year, if Husted and Acton indeed headline the November 2026 ballot.
Serving as a warm-up speaker, Ohio Republican Party Chairman Alex Triantifilou called Acton, the lone major Democratic candidate for governor, “Ohio’s COVID queen.”
“Amy Acton shut down the schools, kept you from taking care of your family in nursing homes, and then she ultimately quit on Ohio,” Triantifilou said of Acton’s high-profile and short-lived tenure as state health department director during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic.
Of course, Acton didn’t shut down the schools. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine did. And Husted was second in command in the administration, serving as a co-star with Acton during DeWIne’s daily livestreamed briefings.
During his speech, Husted, a former college football player at the University of Dayton, talked about his experiences serving on teams made up of people with many different strengths.
“You have to have people that when they get knocked down, they will get back up, and that they will do what is necessary to get the job done,” Husted said.
Afterward, Husted said he and Acton played different roles on Team DeWine.
“She was fighting for closing things down. I was fighting for opening things up. And Gov. DeWine was the referee,” Husted said.
Redistricting off to a crawl … again
Republicans, who have a large majority in the Statehouse, spent three and a half hours on Monday sparring with Democrats and left-leaning members of the public over congressional maps. They also took advantage of the time to criticize a Democratic map proposal that stands no chance of passing.
But what’s more significant is the fact that Republicans did not detail their own plans for drawing a new congressional map. They didn’t even say if one is coming any time soon.
Sen. Jane Timken, who’s chairing the joint legislative committee that held the hearing, was vague when asked when a GOP map might see the light of day.
“We’re going through the process,” she said. “We have September, October and November, and we will finish that process.”
Thus continued the Republican tradition of saying nothing in public about how they will redraw Ohio’s congressional lines until they absolutely have to.
Ohio’s redistricting system is designed to encourage bipartisan compromise. It also provides a way for the majority party to introduce and negotiate maps with the minority party in September and October, before a party-line vote becomes possible before a final deadline in November.
But the last time redrawing occurred, in 2021, Republicans similarly didn’t unveil a map plan in September. At the time, then-Senate President Matt Huffman – who’s now the House speaker – said Republicans were too busy coming up with new state legislative district lines. Then, in October 2021, Huffman said Republicans were too busy dealing with a lawsuit over those lines to release a map.
The GOP eventually released the map on Nov. 16 before approving it two days later.
Back to the present – another redistricting hearing is likely to happen in Columbus next week. It could be the final hearing before one is eventually introduced in November. Because with history as our guide, we’re assuming Republicans might end up being way too busy to do so in October.
Republicans are widely expected to redraw the lines to help them win more than the 10 of 15 Ohio congressional districts they hold right now.
Washington offers Ohio money for new charter schools
U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon appeared in Columbus on Wednesday, where she announced that Ohio would get about $105 million over the next five years to help open new charter schools.
McMahon described the money as going to open new schools and to expand existing schools with “high-quality models.” State officials will decide how to allocate the money, she said.
McMahon said President Donald Trump is “such a believer” in school choice.
Gov. Mike DeWine and U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno also spoke during the Wednesday press conference where the funding was announced. It was held at the Center for Christian Virtue, a conservative Christian advocacy organization, and organized by America First Works.
