In a new, unaired attack ad against Amy Acton, the Democrat running for governor of Ohio, her estranged mother speaks directly to the camera to accuse her of lying about her past. It was not clear who is responsible for the ad, which has drawn widespread condemnation, including from Acton’s brother.

“Don’t vote for people who lie,” says Donna Arthur — who married a man whom Acton accused of sexually abusing her as a child — in the video. “Don’t let her become your governor.”

The video began circulating online after a version without a “paid for” disclosure was posted Monday by Ohio political blog The Rooster.

On Tuesday, Philip Stearns, Acton’s brother, condemned the video in a statement released by her campaign, accusing Acton’s Republican rival, Vivek Ramaswamy, of a “desperate, disgusting attack.”

“It’s not surprising that Vivek Ramaswamy has stooped to such a despicable low as to attempt to turn the sexual abuse Amy endured at twelve years old from our birth mother’s husband into a political talking point,” Stearns said.

“After he was arrested and Amy and I were removed from their custody, our birth mother stayed married to Amy’s rapist until he died,” he added. “This desperate, disgusting attack reveals exactly who Vivek Ramaswamy is at his core — a pathetic excuse for a man who is willing to hurt anyone as long as it gets him what he wants.”

When asked if the Ramaswamy campaign had a hand in creating the video, spokesperson Connie Luck did not explicitly deny the campaign’s involvement.

“We don’t know what happened between Amy and her mother, who first spoke out about Amy in 2020, but we know that Amy Acton is a serial fabulist who has some serious problems with the truth that the public needs to be aware of before deciding who to entrust as governor,” Luck said, in part, in a statement to MS NOW.

Acton’s campaign spokesperson, Addie Bullock, also attributed the ad to her Republican rival.

“The choice to use, and then stand by, Dr. Acton’s estranged and abusive mother who stayed married to her rapist stepfather until the day he died shows Ohioans exactly who Vivek Ramaswamy is,” Bullock said.

The video does not have any reservations, according to AdImpact, which means no money has been put into airing it.

Acton has talked openly about her and her brother’s difficult upbringing. The siblings were homeless for a time growing up, and Acton said they lived in a tent during one winter. She also accused her stepfather of sexual abuse and testified about it to a grand jury, according to Politico.

In 2019, Acton told The Vindicator, a now-shuttered local news outlet, that the last time she saw her mother was after her stepfather’s arrest on criminal charges.

“In the courthouse after they were charged, I went to give her a kiss, and she just turned her cheek away. That was the last time I ever saw her,” Acton said.

Arthur disputed Acton’s allegations against her husband in a 2020 interview with a conservative website, saying she went to court that day to support her husband. She also disputed her daughter’s account of their last interaction.

The National Review, citing court records, reported Tuesday that:

While Donna Arthur was married to Cledith Arthur in 1978 when Acton was 12 years old, Cledith Arthur was charged with having sexual contact with her, documents show. Evidence against him included a sworn statement from Acton’s biological father, and Acton herself was called to testify as a witness. Following his indictment by a grand jury, Cledith Arthur skipped town.

The Review did not report whether the case went to trial or its outcome.

Acton and Ramaswamy are locked in a tight race for governor that has resulted in extremely personal attack ads on both sides. Polls have shown Acton with a narrow lead.

Stearns, too, has talked about his and his sister’s childhood and has credited Acton with saving his life.

“We had all sorts of forms of abuse, neglect, hunger,” he said in a video for her campaign released last week. “I received a lot of abuse, but Amy always got the worst of it. She continued to receive that abuse because she knew she had to protect me from that.”

Hannah Marr contributed reporting.

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