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On National Aviation Day, Reminder that Private Jet Lover Vivek Ramaswamy Has Spent Nearly 40% of 2026 Away from Ohio

Columbus, Ohio — Today is National Aviation Day, a favorite holiday for longtime private jet lover Vivek Ramaswamy. He’s flown to destinations as close as Akron and all the way across the ocean to Paris, France, on the Fourth of July. Despite running for governor of Ohio, Ramaswamy has used his private jet to spend nearly 40% of 2026 outside of Ohio.

In 2025, Ramaswamy spent more than $780,000 on private jet travel, more than Bernie Sanders spent on all air travel during his nationwide tour last year.

“Ohio is proud to be the first in flight, but Vivek Ramaswamy wants to be the first governor who is always flying away from the state he claims to want to lead while calling our workers ‘lazy,’” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “On the ground, Ohioans are struggling with rising costs and deserve more than a governor who can’t even bring himself to take a drive up I-71.”

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BOUGHT AND PAID FOR: Derek Merrin Voted For Data Center Tax Breaks, Then Cashed Checks From The Companies Raking In Profits

As Ohio families get crushed by a 17% spike in summer electric bills, reporting exposes Merrin’s pay-to-play record on the data center giveaways draining Ohio taxpayers

COLUMBUS, OH – Reminder, while Ohio families are struggling with sky-high summer electric bills, Republican Derek Merrin is facing scrutiny for his record of voting to hand Big Tech billions in data center tax breaks — and then cashing campaign checks from the very companies raking in the profits. In 2017, Merrin voted for Ohio’s data center tax break scheme, signing on to shell out more than $2 billion to data centers while in the statehouse. Since then, Ohio families have footed the bill for the $2.5 billion in state and local tax incentives that Ohio data centers have received.

“Derek Merrin voted to hand billions in tax breaks to data centers at the expense of working Ohioans, who are now paying the price while Merrin pockets the profits,” said Ohio Democratic Party Communications Director Marisa Nahem. “This is exactly the kind of culture of corruption that has become a staple of Republican control and that Ohioans are sick of, which is one of the many reasons why come November, they’ll reject Merrin once again.”

Ohio is now home to more than 200 data centers, the sixth-highest in the nation. While Merrin rakes in campaign cash from PACs that have profited from over $17 million in data center tax breaks, utility bills across Ohio were projected to hit $800 this summer, a 17% jump over last year. Now, Merrin wouldn’t even comment when asked about his position on the subject.

Meanwhile, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur is calling out Merrin for his support for the data centers that are raising Ohioans’ costs, emphasizing in a new ad that she will “never give tax breaks to subsidize more data centers.” Rep. Kaptur also took to the floor of the House of Representatives to demand that data centers be held accountable: “How much more will our citizens be forced to pay for power and water? They have a right to know.”

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Ohioans In Lima Rally Against Jon Husted For Bringing Hundreds of Data Centers to Ohio

Husted described as the “face of data centers” in Ohio

COLUMBUS, OHIO — This week, Lima City Councilwoman Jeannine Jordan, Shelby County farmer Chris Gibbs, and Ohioans facing skyrocketing electric bills rallied against Jon Husted for his record of bringing hundreds of data centers to Ohio while local communities were left with the bill. 

Jon Husted blames Ohioans for data centers, telling listeners in a recent interview that “we are the problem.” While Husted blames families and local communities, Ohio electric bills are now projected to be over $800 for the summer — a massive increase. 

“Jon Husted is blaming you and I for using the tools modern life requires, while ignoring the fact that he helped flood the state with massive, power-hungry data centers without a coherent plan, without including citizens in the planning, without considering the costs that the people and the environment would pay,” said Lima City Councilwoman Jeannine Jordan. “We need leadership that starts with people, not with corporations. Jon Husted has shown us exactly where his priorities are, and it is not with ordinary Ohioans trying to keep the lights on.”

“We got Jon Husted, who basically has cut deals behind closed doors over the past ten years, particularly when he was lieutenant governor, bringing in things like tax breaks for data centers,” said Lew Modic, candidate for Allen County Commissioner. “As taxpayers, the two and a half billion dollars we’ve given away in opportunity for sales tax to bring data centers into the state is more money than probably every resident of our county would make in the next 100 years. That’s the kind of deal that we are getting cut with leadership from the appointed Senator Jon Husted.”

“We hear Jon Husted being described as the face of data centers all across Ohio. When it comes to energy-hungry data centers, Husted rolled out the red carpet for these billionaire-controlled outfits, offering them 2.5 billion dollars in state-level property tax exemptions. He fast-tracked the approvals, and that’s where we find ourselves today,” said Chris Gibbs, a farmer in Shelby County. “Just in my case alone, AES has jacked rates 26% in the past 12 months, and over the past 24 months, my rates on those accounts have increased 37%”

Read more about how Jon Husted led the charge to bring data centers to Ohio: 

  • When he was Lt. Governor, Husted led the charge to give billions in out-of-control tax breaks to out-of-state corporations building data centers in Ohio. 
  • According to the Plain Dealer, Husted was “a data center’s best friend” and “spent years rolling out the red carpet” for these massive corporations to come to Ohio. 
  • Now, three months away from an election, Husted is “suddenly positioning himself as the guy who’s going to rein them in.”

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NEW MEMO: ‘Face Of Data Centers’ Jon Husted Begs For Billionaires And Corporations To Bail Out Failing Campaign

NRSC MEMO: ‘More than any other thing in this race, data centers are the anchor hanging around Husted’s neck.’

COLUMBUS, OHIO — A new NRSC memo out today shows that Jon Husted — “the face of data centers”— is being crushed for leading the charge to bring hundreds of massive, power-hungry facilities to Ohio that have sent electricity rates skyrocketing.

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

“After leading the charge to bring hundreds of data centers to Ohio, Jon Husted is now being crushed by his toxic record that has sent electricity rates soaring for families. Now Husted is begging the industry to come and bail him out, but it won’t work — and Ohioans will hold him accountable for jacking up their utility bills in November.”

Read more about how Jon Husted led the charge to bring data centers to Ohio: 

  • Jon Husted played such a large role in bringing data centers to Ohio, the editor of the Plain Dealer referred to Husted as “the face of data centers.”
  • When he was Lt. Governor, Husted led the charge to give billions in out-of-control tax breaks to out-of-state corporations building data centers in Ohio.
  • According to the Plain Dealer, Husted was “a data center’s best friend” and “spent years rolling out the red carpet” for these massive corporations to come to Ohio.
  • Now, three months away from an election, Husted is “suddenly positioning himself as the guy who’s going to rein them in.”

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John Kulewicz Calls For Investigation Of Ties Between JobsOhio And Intel, Keith Faber “Hasn’t Responded To Questions On The Matter”

COLUMBUS, OH – While John Kulewicz is showing Ohioans the relentless commitment to taking on corruption that he’ll bring to the Attorney General’s office, Keith Faber is once again refusing to comment. Instead of following John Kulewicz’s lead, calling out potential conflicts of interest and demanding accountability for the big corporations that work to line their pockets at Ohioans’ expense, Keith Faber is making sure Ohioans know that he isn’t willing to answer questions on the matter – and he isn’t willing to stand up for Ohio families.

“Ohioans deserve an Attorney General who will take on the corruption that is raising costs for Ohio families – and Keith Faber makes clear every day that he is not that person,” said Ohio Democratic Party Communications Director Marisa Nahem. “While John Kulewicz is showing his commitment to taking on corruption and protecting Ohio families, Keith Faber is showing time and again that he can’t even be counted on to respond to basic questions, let alone be trusted to take on bad actors that are lining their pockets while Ohioans foot the bill. Ohioans know they can’t trust Faber, and they’re going to reject him and reject Republicans’ culture of corruption in November.”

This isn’t the first time that Faber has refused to comment on the issues that matter most to Ohio families – and refusing to respond to questions has become a staple of Ohio Republicans’ campaigns heading into Election Day. Faber specifically has been slammed as “tone deaf” for his “unconscionable” refusal to commit to continuing the FirstEnergy case, and his response when pushed on it: he conveniently couldn’t be reached for comment. Faber’s campaign also went into hiding after he made comments“that sounded supportive of ending at least some parts of Ohio Medicaid,” with reporting emphasizing that “Faber’s campaign did not clarify his comments.”

Read more on Faber’s latest refusal to comment – and how, in contrast, John Kulewicz isn’t just talking the talk, he’s walking the walk in working to take on the corruption that is raising costs for Ohio families:

Ohio Capital Journal: Ohio attorney general candidate calls for investigation of ties between JobsOhio and Intel

  • One candidate for Ohio attorney general is calling for the state inspector general to investigate new revelations about ties between the head of the state’s quasi-public economic development agency JobsOhio, the governor’s office, and Intel, a company that has received millions.
  • The other candidate hasn’t responded to questions about the matter.
  • John Kulewicz, the Democratic nominee for AG, last week amended his complaint to Ohio Inspector General Randall J. Meyer with details of other possible conflicts of interest on the part of Josh Rubin, a lobbyist who chairs the board of JobsOhio, that were reported last week by the Capital Journal. 
  • A spokesman for Keith Faber, Kulewicz’s Republican opponent in the attorney general’s race, didn’t respond to questions for this story.
  • A spokesman for DeWine said Rubin’s multiple roles didn’t amount to a conflict. Despite being registered to lobby JobsOhio for Intel, his “activity and expense” filings show he actively lobbied the governor’s office on the Intel project, while he made no such filings regarding JobsOhio, DeWine Press Secretary Dan Tierney said.
  • In emailed responses to written questions, Kulewicz disagreed, saying, “This is an apparent conflict of interest. And at a time when we urgently need to restore public confidence in government, this also creates a clear appearance of impropriety. When you take on a job like this and answer the call to public service, you do so knowing that you can only serve the People of Ohio. You can’t serve both the public and the powerful.”
  • Faber’s spokesman was sent the same questions as the Kulewicz campaign. He didn’t respond.
     

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