OVER ONE WEEK LATER: Ramaswamy Running Mate Still Refusing to Explain What Exactly He Needs to “Explore” About Child Marriage
May 27, 2026
McColley: Legislation Banning Child Marriage Needs “Further Exploration”
Columbus, Ohio – Over one week ago, Vivek Ramaswamy’s running mate Rob McColley inexplicably told the Columbus Dispatch that legislation banning child marriage needed “further exploration.”
“Vivek Ramaswamy’s silence after his running mate said banning child marriage needs ‘further exploration’ is disturbingly on brand for a candidate who mocks sexual abuse survivors, refused to return donations from Epstein associates, and touted endorsements from state lawmakers accused of sexual misconduct,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “Protecting children should be something both sides of the aisle can agree on, and Vivek Ramaswamy owes Ohio parents an explanation.”
READ MORE: Ramaswamy’s running mate stalls Ohio child marriage ban.
- A bipartisan bill to end child marriage in Ohio has stalled in the state Senate after Republicans pulled it from a planned committee vote, leaving in place a state law that still allows 17-year-olds to wed under court approval, according to reporting by the Columbus Dispatch. Senate Bill 341 was set for a Judiciary Committee vote last week. After a closed Republican caucus meeting, the bill came off the agenda. It is not back on this week’s schedule either.
- Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, who is running for lieutenant governor on Republican Vivek Ramaswamy’s ticket, told the Dispatch that even straightforward issues sometimes warrant more time. “We’ve still got time left in this legislative session,” McColley said.
- McColley’s reluctance to move SB 341 forward comes as the Ramaswamy gubernatorial ticket continues to face scrutiny over its handling of issues involving child safety and sexual abuse.
- During his 2024 presidential run, Ramaswamy’s allied super PAC, the American Exceptionalism PAC, accepted a $100,000 donation from New York hedge fund manager Glenn Dubin, who was named in court documents as an associate of Jeffrey Epstein. The PAC pledged to refund the contribution but dissolved without doing so, according to federal filings.
- Ramaswamy’s gubernatorial campaign has also drawn criticism for promoting endorsements from Ohio Republican state lawmakers accused of misconduct involving young people, as TiffinOhio.net previously reported. Those endorsements were briefly removed from Ramaswamy’s website before being restored.
- In April, Ramaswamy faced sharp pushback after telling supporters that his Democratic opponent, Dr. Amy Acton, offered no real vision for Ohio “other than to complain about what someone else did to her” — a reference to Acton’s public account of surviving childhood sexual abuse.
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