Ohio’s gubernatorial campaign has kicked into gear, and so has PolitiFact with its weird partisan political takes. Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy was tagged as “Mostly False” for an ad against his Democrat opponent that said:
In 2020, “Amy Acton called off Ohio’s election at the last minute.”
PolitiFact’s Amy Sherman acknowledges that “Ramaswamy’s campaign spokesperson pointed to an order Acton signed in March 2020 to close polling sites” when she was the state's health director. So it’s True.
What makes it False? Sherman brought out the but-but: “But DeWine, who endorsed Ramaswamy, said that was his call after a judge declined to delay the primary.”
Even if you included DeWine’s claim of responsibility, it’s “Half True” at worst. But these are the “Truth-O-Meter” games that they play. You can wonder if this line of attack on Acton is effective -- but part of that calculation is the media trying to tell voters it's wrong.
When you look at the footnotes to this “fact check,” you notice that PolitiFact is only following up on the Ohio press seeking to punish Ramaswamy for this ad.
NBC4, Gov. DeWine says Ramaswamy ad claiming Acton closed polls in 2020 is inaccurate, April 16, 2026
Statehouse News Bureau, Ohio governor race: Ramaswamy's anti-Acton ad leaves out details about March 2020 primary, April 21, 2026
The Columbus Dispatch, Ramaswamy ad blames Acton for delayed 2020 primary. Here's the truth, April 23, 2026
NBC 4 in Columbus was fierce:
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine denounced a gubernatorial campaign ad that claims Democratic candidate and former Ohio Health Director Amy Acton was responsible for postponing the 2020 primary election.
“In government this happens all the time. Do you think a member of the president’s cabinet would issue this kind of order without his approval?” DeWine said. “I told her to issue the health order. The decision was mine.”
Statehouse News Service argued:
"Nobody ever cast a vote for Amy Acton, but she stopped yours," the ad launched April 11 says. It claims she “called off Ohio’s election at the last minute”. However, Republican state leaders, including some on the ballot now, had as much or more of a hand in that decision.
Alex Perry at the Columbus Dispatch twisted it: “As the race for Ohio's next governor continues, a campaign ad shared by Republican Vivek Ramaswamy accuses Democratic candidate Dr. Amy Acton of canceling Ohio's March 2020 primary election, a claim Gov. Mike DeWine says is inaccurate.”
Overall, PolitiFact has done 12 fact checks on Ramaswamy since 2023, eight of them are “Mostly False” or worse (75 percent). Three of them are “Pants On Fire” ratings. Let’s remember Kamala Harris has zero “Pants On Fire” ratings. The only “Mostly True” this Republican received was the very first one three years ago, and he was criticizing Ron DeSantis.
Amy Acton has Zero fact checks.
