Vivek Ramaswamy wins Ohio GOP gubernatorial primary

Vivek Ramaswamy captured the Republican nomination for Ohio governor on Tuesday, defeating political newcomer Casey Putsch and setting up a competitive November race against Democrat Amy Acton.

Ramaswamy carried roughly 86% of primary ballots to Putsch’s 14%, with the Associated Press calling the race shortly after polls closed Tuesday evening. The biotech entrepreneur, who ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024, secured President Donald Trump’s “complete and total endorsement” on Inauguration Day, after stepping away from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

At his victory celebration in Columbus, Ramaswamy told supporters, “I’m proud to officially say that today it is our pleasure to become the Republican nominee for the governor of Ohio.” Vice President JD Vance, the former Ohio senator, told reporters he cast a primary ballot for Ramaswamy in Cincinnati that morning.

Ramaswamy will face Acton in the race to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Mike DeWine. Acton, a physician who led the state Department of Health from 2019 to 2020, ran unopposed in the Democratic primary. She rose to statewide prominence as DeWine’s daily on-camera partner during Ohio’s early pandemic response, a tenure Republicans have used to brand her “Dr. Lockdown.”

The Democratic Governors Association called Ramaswamy an out-of-touch “presidential also-ran” in a statement. No Democrat has won an Ohio gubernatorial election in 20 years and the state backed Trump by 11 points in 2024, but the Cook Political Report recently shifted the contest from likely Republican to lean Republican. His campaign has reported more than $50 million in total fundraising, including a $25 million self-contribution, while Acton has raised $10.4 million.

Ramaswamy, the son of Indian immigrants, would be the first South Asian governor in Ohio history if elected. He would also become only the third Indian American ever elected governor of a U.S. state, after Republicans Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and his former rival, Nikki Haley of South Carolina, and the first to win the office outside the South.

Each of the three has built a national profile through the Republican Party, and each has at points faced criticism from within the Indian American community over how openly to embrace their South Asian identity. Putsch’s racial attacks on Ramaswamy’s heritage during the primary reflect the persistent racial hostility AAPI candidates often face even in high-profile statewide races.