COLUMBUS, OHIO — Amy Acton wants to be Ohio’s next Governor. But before Ohioans consider her future, they deserve a clear accounting of her past — a record marked by unconstitutional overreach, preventable suffering, and lasting damage to Ohio families.
As Ohio’s Health Director, Acton issued the order shutting down Ohio businesses — gyms, restaurants, and small shops — with no statutory authority to do so. A court agreed. Lake County Court of Common Pleas Judge Eugene Lucci ruled that Acton “acted in an impermissibly arbitrary, unreasonable, and oppressive manner” and that her orders violated the Ohio Constitution. She didn’t bend the rules — she broke them, and a judge said so on the record. (Lake County Court of Common Pleas, Judge Eugene Lucci, May 2020; Reason.com, 5/20/20)
Acton also signed the order banning Ohio families from visiting loved ones in nursing homes. Mothers could not see their children. Spouses could not hold each other’s hands. Grandparents died alone. While Acton’s visitor ban was in effect, over 70% of Ohio’s COVID-19 deaths occurred inside nursing homes — and under her leadership, Ohio recorded the highest elderly death rate in the entire Midwest. These were not abstractions. They were Ohio families, separated at the worst possible moment. (CDC National Center for Health Statistics, 2023; WKYC 3News Investigates, 2020; ABC6 On Your Side, 2020)
And it was Acton’s direction that made Ohio the first state in the nation to close its public schools in March 2020. Studies conducted afterward found that those closures caused significant harm to children’s mental health — spikes in anxiety, depression, and learning loss that Ohio kids are still recovering from today. (JAMA Network Open, 2021; Daily Caller, 7/3/25)
Amy Acton violated Ohioans’ constitutional rights, presided over the highest elderly death rate in the Midwest, and put Ohio children on a path of educational and emotional setbacks that persist years later. That is her record. Ohio voters deserve to weigh it before she asks for their trust again.
