Ramaswamy Loses Ohio Governor Race to Acton

Ohio has elected a Democrat governor for the first time since 2006. The AP and Decision Desk HQ have Amy Acton ahead of Vivek Ramaswamy by roughly five points with most of the vote counted, and she will succeed term-limited Republican Mike DeWine, her former boss. Final certified totals are still to come.

I'll say it plainly, since no one else on our side will: the Republican brand did not lose Ohio, the campaign did. The Daily Caller reports Ramaswamy raised about $82 million, half of it his own money, and an anonymous Republican strategist told the outlet the campaign's late moves meant it would "deserve to lose." The October ad featuring Acton's estranged mother drew criticism from both parties, which takes real effort in this climate. Ramaswamy defended it anyway.

The Beltway geniuses will blame the map. I'll blame $82 million spent on a closing argument that united everybody against the closer. I'll be accepting apologies through Friday.

“deserve to lose”An anonymous Republican strategist, via Daily Caller