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Columbus, Ohio- On day one of his campaign, billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy vowed to eliminate income and property taxes. But while Ramaswamy’s scheme would mean a few extra dollars to fuel up his private jet, working families in Ohio could face a 20% sales tax on everything.

Vivek Ramaswamy said workers who are struggling to make ends meet should just earn more and that rising costs are only in Ohioans’ imaginations. But what’s not imaginary is Ramaswamy’s plan to make Ohioans pay a 20% sales tax on everything.

“Ohioans are already struggling to make ends meet after years of Republicans failing our state, and now Vivek Ramaswamy wants to make their lives even more difficult by slapping a 20% sales tax on everything,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “Under Ramaswamy’s scheme, working families would be forced to figure out how to stretch their budgets even further while he cruises above them in his private jet, calls Ohioans lazy, and claims we’re imagining our costs are going up.”

Read more:

Cleveland.com: DeWine warns sales tax could hit 20% if property taxes abolished

• If a proposed constitutional amendment abolishing property taxes were to pass, Ohioans may see sales taxes skyrocket into the double digits, Gov. Mike DeWine said Thursday morning.

• “Sales tax could go up to 17, 18, 19, 20%, sales tax in the state of Ohio on products that you buy,” DeWine said. “So, it would be absolutely devastating.”

• DeWine also warned that policymakers could be forced to consider increasing income taxes to find new revenue as well.

Columbus Dispatch: Vivek Ramaswamy running for Ohio governor. Wants to end income, property taxes

• Ramaswamy in his speeches outlined some of his platforms. He pledged to eliminate both the income tax and property taxes, which make up more than half of the state’s tax revenue.

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Columbus, Ohio – New reporting from Signal Ohio revealed Vivek Ramaswamy’s Super PAC Victors Not Victims took more than a quarter of a million dollars from IT Serve Alliance, then failed to refund the contributions until after Ramaswamy received backlash from online conservatives. 

In November 2025, Vivek Ramaswamy canceled a planned speech last minute at IT Serve Alliance’s annual conference in Puerto Rico following backlash from his own party over IT Serve Alliance’s support for outsourcing American jobs.

IT Serve Alliance contributed $100,000 to V-Pac on November 18th, 2025 and an additional $175,000 on December 1st, 2025. V-PAC then refunded all $275,000 in contributions on December 3rd, 2025, just two days after the controversy began. 

“Vivek’s allies’ willingness to accept more than a quarter of a million dollars from an organization that wants to outsource American jobs only to scramble to save face after getting caught proves once again Ohioans can’t trust Vivek Ramaswamy to fight for them,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “It’s on-brand for a candidate who calls Ohioans lazy and tells struggling families they’re just imagining the rising cost of living.”

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Day 1 Trial Tracker: Husted Mentioned 21 Times

Columbus, Ohio — As the FirstEnergy bribery trial kicks off in Akron, one thing is already clear: Jon Husted is more deeply connected to the largest corruption scandal in Ohio history than already known. 

On the very first day of proceedings, Husted was mentioned twenty one times, with his first mention coming less than twenty minutes after opening statements began. Husted is listed as a potential defense witness, underscoring how key his role was in the scheme that delivered a billion dollar bailout to corporations while sticking Ohio families with higher energy bills.

Ohio Democratic Party Senior Communications Advisor Tony Wen released the following statement:

“The reason Jon Husted’s name keeps coming up in this trial is simple: he played a key role in Ohio’s largest corruption scandal. From staying in constant communication with FirstEnergy executives to helping pass a billion dollar bailout that raised energy bills on families, Husted’s activities make it clear why he was FirstEnergy’s ‘golden boy.’ Ohioans deserve answers about how deep Husted’s ties go.”

Read more about Jon Husted’s role in Ohio’s largest corruption scandal:

• Neil Clark, a FirstEnergy lobbyist and co-defendant with former House Speaker Larry Householder, referred to Husted as FirstEnergy’s “golden boy.”

• Text messages between Husted and FirstEnergy Executives reveal that the trio were in constant communication “before, during and after his campaign.”

• Indicted FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones said Husted was a “good friend of FirstEnergy” who was “highly engaged” and “fighting to the end” in support of the massive bail out.

• Just weeks after Husted and DeWine were elected in 2018, they had dinner with Jones and Dowling at the Athletic Club of Columbus.

• Public records show that FirstEnergy funneled $1 million in dark money to a nonprofit backing Husted in 2017 — part of the same corrupt scheme that led to federal indictments.

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Columbus, Ohio – Yesterday afternoon, billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy officially filed to appear on the ballot in the 2026 gubernatorial election. Here’s what Ohioans need to know:

• Ramaswamy called Ohioans lazy and mediocre in a bizarre social media rant that he still hasn’t apologized for more than a year later 

• He moved his business to Texas just months before announcing his run for governor.

• At a visit to a food bank in Dayton, Ramaswamy told hungry kids his solution to their problems was to learn to read faster. Months later in an Instagram video, he told struggling Ohioans that the solution to high costs is to just “earn more.”

• He agreed to keynote a conference for a trade association that supports outsourcing American jobs, only to pull out at the last minute after receiving backlash from his own party. 

• In an unearthed video, Ramaswamy called Medicare and Medicaid a “mistake” and refuses to answer questions about how he will lower skyrocketing health care costs for Ohioans.

• Finally, Ramaswamy said last week in a Fox News interview that the higher costs Ohioans are struggling to afford are only “perceived.”  Last year, Ohio families paid $1,532 more in expenses than in 2024.  

“Vivek Ramaswamy is an out-of-touch billionaire who Ohioans know they can’t trust to put our state first,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “Whether it’s calling Ohioans lazy, moving his business to Texas, or saying that Medicare and Medicaid are ‘mistakes’ and rising costs are just in our imagination, Ramaswamy doesn’t understand the challenges Ohioans are facing, doesn’t care, and won’t lift a finger to lower costs for working families.” 

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Columbus, Ohio- The first month of 2026 is behind us, and it was a tough one for billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy. 

First, it was revealed that his personal bodyguard was at the center of a massive drug trafficking scandal and it took Ramaswamy weeks to fire him. Reporting later revealed Ramaswamy’s security firm was operating illegally in Ohio due to the fact that they were not licensed in the state, causing the firm to fold within days.

Then, in another example of just how wrong Ramaswamy is for Ohio’s working families. Ramaswamy said Medicaid and Medicare were a “mistake,” despite the fact that the absence of either would skyrocket health care prices for Ohioans.

Ramamswamy followed this up by unveiling his grand plan for hardworking Ohioans struggling with rising costs: just make more money. 

And if it wasn’t already clear that Ramaswamy neither cares about nor has any solutions for the challenges Ohioans are going through, he told Fox News that costs aren’t actually rising and Ohioans have just “perceived” that everything from food to utilities to clothing is more expensive. 

It’s no surprise from a politician who spent more than $555,000 on private jet flights in the most recent campaign finance filing period.

“Vivek Ramaswamy opened 2026 by flying over our state in his private jet lecturing Ohioans about how rising costs are only in our imagination,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “We look forward to Ramaswamy continuing to run on his platform of calling Ohioans lazy while making it clear he doesn’t understand what working families are going through.”  

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