Republican · Ohio governor · 2026
Vivek Ramaswamy
Ramaswamy grew up in Cincinnati, studied biology and law, then founded a biotechnology company.
Biography
Vivek Ramaswamy has taken his sons for haircuts at the same barbershop he visited as a child in suburban Cincinnati.1 He and his wife, Apoorva, met at a party during graduate school and now have three children, including a baby daughter; she is a surgeon at Ohio State.1
The son of Indian immigrants, he grew up in Cincinnati, played competitive junior tennis and piano, and graduated as his high school’s valedictorian.2 He studied biology at Harvard, earned a Yale law degree and worked in life sciences investing, combining finance with an interest in drug development.2 At Harvard, he also cofounded StudentBusinesses.com, an online company connecting entrepreneurs with professional resources, which was acquired in 2009.2
Ramaswamy founded the biotechnology company Roivant in 2014 and left its board in 2023 as he entered the presidential race.3 He published Woke, Inc. in 2021, arguing against corporate involvement in social and political causes.4 In 2022, he also cofounded Strive, an Ohio asset management firm.5
Running against Democrat Acton, he proposes phasing out the state income tax, beginning with capital gains, alongside property tax relief and expanded energy production.67 Their contest would determine whether Ohio pursues his broader tax overhaul or Acton’s targeted family tax credits and medical debt relief program.68
Record and controversies
Advertisement involving Acton’s mother
About both candidates: Vivek Ramaswamy and Amy Acton
Ramaswamy’s October advertisement featured Acton’s estranged mother calling her a liar.9 The ad did not explain the decades of estrangement after Acton’s stepfather faced sexual abuse charges; Acton’s brother publicly corroborated her account of childhood abuse.9 Governor Mike DeWine criticized the ad and urged its removal, while Trump defended it.10 Ramaswamy’s campaign argued that Acton had first attacked his mother’s professional work; Acton had cited reporting about her role in his pharmaceutical company.10
Strive whistleblower litigation
An August 25, 2026 federal ruling allowed Joyce Rosely’s whistleblower retaliation claims against Strive and Ramaswamy to proceed.11 Rosely alleges that he demanded securities law violations and participated in firing her after she objected; his attorneys disputed that the complaint established his personal involvement in the dismissal.11 The judge tested whether her pleaded allegations were legally sufficient, not whether they had been proven at trial.11 Separate age discrimination and harassment retaliation counts were dismissed without prejudice, permitting amendment.11