Dr. Amy Acton, a familiar face to many during the COVID-19 pandemic, has filed paperwork to run for governor of Ohio as a Democrat in 2026, The Associated Press reports. She is the first Democrat to launch such a campaign.
Acton served as Republican Gov. Mike DeWine's director of Ohio's Department of Health beginning 2019, the first woman to be appointed to the role. She rose to prominence during 2020's COVID pandemic, when she often appeared alongside DeWine during his daily briefings — so much so she, along with DeWine, earned a bobblehead in her likeness. She resigned from that role in mid-2020, and since then has done nonprofit work as well as work in Democratic politics.
Acton was at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this summer, where she said she's learned a lot about being governor and is considering a run for the office in 2026.
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If she earns the nomination, ascension to the governor's mansion won't be easy. In November's election, Republicans swept all statewide offices, including that of Ohio's U.S. Senate seat, long held by Democrat Sherrod Brown.
On the Republican side, she could face current Lt. Gov. Jon Husted or Attorney General Dave Yost, who are rumored as likely to run for the Republican nomination for governor, as DeWine is term-limited.
—Additional reporting by Karen Kasler
