Dem handlers lash out when Ramaswamy staffer confronts their boss about debate: ‘No pictures’

Campaign personnel for Amy Acton, Ohio’s former health director and Democratic candidate for Ohio governor, got into a confrontation with a Republican political activist wielding a camera last Saturday at one of Acton’s campaign events in Harrison, Ohio.

When the cameraman approached Acton, asking her why she continued to decline invitations to debate her Republican challenger, Vivek Ramaswamy, her staff quickly rushed in to block him off from Acton.

The video, which shows Acton walking away from the interviewer, adds to criticisms from Ramaswamy’s camp that she hasn’t given a good answer for why she isn’t willing to do a debate as both candidates enter the homestretch of their campaigns.

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Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton speaks at a primary election night campaign event after winning the party's nomination for governor in Columbus, Ohio, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (Jay LaPrete/AP Photo)

"Dr. Amy Acton, why do you refuse to debate your opponent, Vivek Ramaswamy?" the interviewer asked.

"No photos, no videos," the staff repeated. "I said — no pictures, no interviews."

At one point in the confrontation, Acton’s staff seemed to have bumped into the cameraman, jolting his camera out of frame and prompting him to ask them to be "careful."

Acton did not respond to the questions.

Earlier this month, after Ramaswamy accepted a debate invitation from CNN, Acton’s campaign told local media she would not accept.

"Dr. Acton’s focus is on talking with Ohioans, not platforming a scam artist who spreads baseless lies about her and her family, uses AI to falsely paint her as someone with a substance abuse problem, and shames Dr. Acton for being sexually abused as a child while Vivek stands with predators and abusers," a campaign spokesperson said in a Sept. 2 statement.

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Ohio Republican guebenatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks during a campaign rally on Feb. 25, 2025 at the Glass City Center in Toledo, Ohio. (Scott W. Grau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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The response refers to a series of Republican attacks: her role in Ohio’s COVID response, a verbal domestic dispute in 2019 that she had while intoxicated, and AI-generated campaign ads that replaced her car’s license plate with a "drunk mom" tag. It also nods to Ramaswamy’s quiet posture toward releasing the Epstein files at the outset of his gubernatorial campaign.

In his response, Ramaswamy ignored Acton’s needling.

He seized on her decision, calling into question her qualifications to lead the state as its top executive while, at the same time, refusing to press her case on a debate stage.

"It’s too bad for Ohio voters that Acton won’t take voter questions, won’t debate, quit after failing as Ohio’s health director, and has some serious issues now surfaced in multiple police reports," Ramaswamy said in a post to social media.

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Amy Acton, former director of the Ohio Department of Health and Democratic gubernatorial candidate, meets with local residents while campaigning at Bottoms Up Coffee in Columbus, Ohio, on Monday, April 6, 2026. (Stephen Zenner/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Acton’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital about her interaction with the interviewer last Saturday.

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Having cleared the Ohio Democratic primary, Acton will face off against Ramaswamy in the state’s general election on Nov. 3.