Ramaswamy Questioned Over Campaign Ad on Acton as Walt Z. Fundraiser Draws Donation Question

Ohio Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy declined on Thursday to say whether his opponent, Dr. Acton, lied about being raped, when asked at the end of a campaign event at K's Hamburger Shop in Troy, Ohio. Ramaswamy said the ad was about her lying about him, said she had lied about him extensively, and said he was talking to voters before staff moved the questioner away. The ad, paid for by his campaign, features Acton's estranged mother, Donna Arthur, who says Acton lies about her past, including about growing up in a tent. Acton has said she has not seen her mother since 1978, when her stepfather, Cledith Arthur, was indicted by an Ohio grand jury for sexual contact with her when she was under 13. He fled Ohio with her mother, evaded arrest warrants and died in Pennsylvania in 2004. Acton's brother, Philip Stearns, said their mother stayed married to him until he died.

Separately, a Michigan Red Baron Pizza worker known as Walt Z., a father of four, was filmed being harassed by an 18-year-old who pretended to steal his money. A GoFundMe has raised roughly $465,000, and Red Baron said he is keeping his job. A headline asked whether Ramaswamy gave him $38,000.

Mother Jones, on the left, leads with a first-person confrontation with Ramaswamy. It quotes the ad, Arthur and Stearns, and sets out the indictment timeline. Its framing treats the ad as exploiting his opponent's family history, and it does not mention Walt Z. The Daily Wire, on the right, leads with Walt Z., quoting his complaints about mortgage stress and long hours, the GoFundMe wording and Red Baron's reply. It calls him representative of ordinary Americans and uses harsh language about the streamer. Its opening does not mention Ramaswamy or Acton. The two share no facts in the available text. The Times of India offers a distinct angle, asking only whether Ramaswamy donated $38,000 to Walt Z., with no excerpt to confirm it.