Charles Hilu at National Review Online:
The mother of Ohio Democratic gubernatorial nominee Amy Acton cut an ad Monday in which she accuses her daughter of lying about her childhood and encourages voters not to make her their next governor, but legal documents obtained by National Review provide
evidence that Acton faced sexual abuse as a child while in her mother’s custody.
Donna Arthur, Acton’s estranged mother, says in the ad that life in Ohio “will only get worse” with Acton in the governor’s mansion, and she disputes parts of Acton’s personal history. But Acton has long maintained — even before becoming a political candidate — that she grew up in an unstable home when she lived with her mother following her parents’ divorce, even spending a winter in a tent in a campground outside of Youngstown and enduring sexual abuse by one of her mother’s male partners. Court records confirm many key parts of Acton’s account of her life.
“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,” Acton’s mother says in the ad.
While Donna Arthur was married to Cledith Arthur in 1978 when Acton was 12 years old, Cledith Arthur was charged with having sexual contact with her, documents show. Evidence against him included a sworn statement from Acton’s biological father, and Acton herself was called to testify as a witness. Following his indictment by a grand jury, Cledith Arthur skipped town.
Donna Arthur also has her own criminal history, including pleading guilty to theft by deception while living in Pennsylvania in the 1990s and being accused of animal abuse as recently as 2021.
Following the ad’s release Acton, who is locked in a tight race with Republican nominee Vivek Ramaswamy, put out a statement from her brother confirming the candidates’s side of the story.
“After he was arrested and Amy and I were removed from their custody, our birth mother stayed married to Amy’s rapist until he died,” Philip Stearns, the brother, said in a press release from the campaign. “This desperate, disgusting attack reveals exactly who Vivek Ramaswamy is at his core – a pathetic excuse for a man who is willing to hurt anyone as long as it gets him what he wants.”
Let's get into it .. ☕ Acton Mom Attack Ad First of all anyone whose worked on campaigns (me), knows every piece of media must be labeled with "paid for by." Under Ohio Revised Code Section 3517.20, state campaigns must conspicuously use the specific phrase "paid for by" followed by the name of the entity, explicitly banning generic terms like "paid political advertisement". If an outside Political Action Committee (PAC) or individual buys an ad supporting a governor without the campaign's involvement, state laws usually mandate that the ad explicitly state "not authorized by any candidate" alongside who paid for it. Furthermore.... Under Ohio Revised Code Section 3517.105 and Section 3517.20, a political advertisement that is not sponsored or authorized by a candidate's campaign (known as an independent expenditure) must explicitly tell the public that the ad is unauthorized and state exactly who paid for it. The disclaimer must include a clear statement showing a total lack of coordination with the candidate. It must contain the Name and Address of the chairperson, treasurer, or secretary of the organization or PAC responsible for the ad. In Ohio, if an individual is acting completely alone and paying with their own personal funds, they are entirely exempt from the political disclaimer rule. So one or more things can/may be true: This is a rogue actor who paid for by himself (low probability). Vivek's camp funded it, didn't report it as a campaign expense or media, then floated it to an NPC who ran it on X. A PAC, donor, or outside funding source paid for it, didn't reported, and floated it to an NPC. Buckle up.
— The Constitutionalist 🇺🇸 (@WeWillBeFree24) October 20, 2026