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Columbus, Ohio- After billionaire hedge fund manager Vivek Ramaswamy filed paperwork to run for governor, Democrats are making sure Ohioans know who he really is. Before he launches his statewide tour, Ohioans should know Ramaswamy is a billionaire who holds deeply disturbing views about the people he wants to serve. He would only help special interests and political insiders, not our state’s working families.

Ramaswamy is a billionaire insider who rose to prominence in Republican politics self-funding his campaign while boosting ties to right-wing elites and billionaires like Peter Thiel, Leonard Leo, Elon Musk and most recently Donald Trump. It’s clear that as governor, he would prioritize Wall Street over main streets in Ohio.

But even more concerning are his dim views of the people he’s running to serve. Ramaswamy called Ohioans “mediocre” and “lazy” in a rant that showed us his true colors. With those views of Americans, he’s not fit to hold any public office, let alone governor of Ohio.

Ramaswamy enters a gubernatorial primary field that is looking increasingly likely to continue the tradition of messy, expensive GOP primaries. Once again, Ohioans will watch politicians fight each other while not fighting for them.

“Ohioans are struggling to make ends meet, and the last thing they need is a billionaire who calls them ‘lazy’ asking for their votes,” said Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters. “Ramaswamy’s comments reveal a politician deeply out of touch with his own state who clearly won’t fight for Ohioans. Democrats know that Ohio is home to the best workers in the world and unlike Ramaswamy, we’ll always fight for them.”

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Columbus, Ohio- Senator Jon Husted is rapidly approaching the end of his first month in the United States Senate. While he might be working out great for elite special interests and billionaires, Ohio’s working families aren’t feeling the love from their Senator. Here’s a recap of what he’s been up to in his first month on the job.

• Ignoring his constituents: Husted made headlines for just how difficult it was for Ohioans to get in contact with him. Even before a breakdown of Senate phone lines, constituents reported getting voicemails when trying to make their voice heard. We hope in month two Husted will at least pretend to listen to Ohioans.

• Abandoning “moderate” image to serve as rubber stamp for Trump’s extreme agenda: While Ohioans didn’t elect Jon Husted to serve as their senator, he should be their voice now that he’s in Washington. Instead, he promised blanket support for all of Trump’s nominees and has supported or stayed silent on unpopular executive actions that would uniquely harm Ohio.

• Started off time on Aging Committee taking food from seniors: Within days of his appointment to the Senate Committee on Aging, Donald Trump unveiled a spending freeze that could’ve threatened Meals on Wheels, which millions of homebound seniors across the country rely on for food. This would’ve been a great opportunity to use his role to ensure that no senior goes hungry. Instead, he just stayed silent.

• Still refusing to answer questions about his involvement in $60 million bribery scandal: Some things never change. Ohioans had to watch a politician at the heart of our state’s largest bribery scandal get a promotion. After leaving state government, he’s still refusing to answer questions about his involvement. 

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Columbus, OH — Today, Ohio Senators Jon Husted and Bernie Moreno voted to confirm prominent anti-vaxxer and 9/11 conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. This latest in a line of disappointing confirmation votes only continues revealing to Ohioans their senators aren’t working for them.

Despite desperately backtracking on his anti-vaccine views during the hearings, Kennedy holds extreme anti-vaccination views and has shared dangerous lies in lieu of real health and safety information. He’s not just unqualified; he’s dangerous for Ohioans. 

In addition to sharing lies about critical health information, Kennedy has shared conspiracy theories about wi-fi, various diseases, the water supply, and even 9/11. When confronted, he said “it’s hard to tell what is a conspiracy theory and what isn’t” when it came to the September 11th terrorist attacks. When questioned about 9/11, he refused to take sides and then doubled down at his confirmation hearing. Ohioans deserve leaders who will tell the truth to keep them safe. Instead, Husted and Moreno sent them a conspiracy theorist. 

“Kennedy is another example of Donald Trump’s wildly unqualified and dangerous cabinet nominees that Senators Husted and Moreno rubber stamped,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “Senator Husted and Senator Moreno either have no interest in representing Ohioans in the Senate or they’re too weak to stand up to Donald Trump. Either way, Ohioans will be less safe because of their decisions today.”

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Columbus, Ohio-  Before he was a U.S. Senator, Jon Husted was better known to statehouse lobbyists as FirstEnergy’s “Golden Boy.” Despite countless attempts to deny his involvement, it’s clear that Husted is deeply implicated in a major statehouse bribery scandal that Ohioans are still paying for. Before he asks for their vote again, Ohioans deserve answers to their questions 

Here are four questions Senator Husted must answer about his involvement in Ohio’s largest pay-to-play scandal in state history:

1. Why did you say you had no role in the legislative process for HB6 when texts from FirstEnergy executives revealed that was not the case?

2. What was the exact role you played while “fighting to the end” to pass HB6?

3. Why are you refusing to say if you knew about FirstEnergy’s $1 million contribution to a dark money group supporting your campaign?

4. Why were you deposed by investors suing FirstEnergy in a civil case in connection with the HB6 scandal? What were the results of that deposition?

Read more about Senator Husted’s work with FirstEnergy and House Bill 6 at StateOfficialTwo.Com

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Columbus, Ohio-  In November 2023, Ohio voters overwhelmingly passed a citizen-led initiative to legalize marijuana in Ohio. Since then, Republicans have been hell bent on ignoring the will of the voters. Last week, they dropped their latest proposal, gutting the law voters passed and instead prioritizing extreme politicians in the legislature.

Ohioans passed a law specifically stating how marijuana would be regulated, taxed, and distributed. Instead of allowing the law the voters passed to work as it was intended, Republican lawmakers instead proposed their own amendments to double the tax on marijuana sold to consumers, restrict home grow, and cap the number of active dispensaries.

Republicans didn’t stop there. They proposed redirecting the extra revenue from their new tax on Ohio consumers towards a general fund, where they decide how to use it. The law voters passed funded substance abuse services and job creation. 

“House Speaker Matt Huffman said that these were ‘very complex’ issues. But it’s clear statehouse Republicans just think they know better than Ohio voters,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “This isn’t the first time Republicans have turned around and ignored the will of the voters. Ohioans have come to expect constant tricks from the statehouse, and they’re sick of it.”

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