photo by: Jennifer Compston-Strough

Dr. Amy Acton, Democrat candidate for Ohio governor in 2026, speaks to local supporters during a reception at the Shaheen Law Group office in St. Clairsville prior to providing the keynote address at the Belmont County Democrat Party’s 65th Annual Dinner on Thursday evening.

From humble beginnings in Youngstown, Dr. Amy Acton rose to lead Ohio’s Department of Health — and now she hopes to become the state’s chief executive so she can continue her efforts to serve all of the Buckeye State’s people.

Acton, a Democrat candidate for Ohio governor in 2026, was the keynote speaker for the Belmont County Democrat Party’s 65th Annual Dinner on Thursday evening. Held at Undo’s West in St. Clairsville, the event that party leaders said normally attracts fewer than 80 people this year featured a packed house. Undo’s staffers were forced to set up additional tables to accommodate the large crowd, and party Treasurer Bob Krajnak said 170 tickets were sold. Among the attendees were Democrat officials from Monroe and Jefferson counties.

Prior to the dinner, Acton visited the offices of Shaheen Law Group in St. Clairsville, where she talked one-on-one with supporters of her campaign. Owner and attorney Michael Shaheen later introduced Acton at the dinner. He told the audience that as ODH director during the COVID-19 pandemic, Acton saved thousands of Ohioans’ lives.

“Our job now is to lift her up,” he said regarding her campaign.

When Acton took the podium, she described the difficulties of her childhood, which included some abuse, poverty and time spent living in a car and in a basement. She recalled that it was the people who did not look the other way — people who were willing to extend a helping hand to her and her brother — who made the biggest impact on her life. She said it will take those same kinds of people to make a difference in the way the state and nation are heading.

“Everywhere I go, people are longing for change,” she said. “Listen to me, they are longing for public servants again. They do not care what party you are, to be honest. But they want to see you solve problems instead of making problems. We need that change in this state.”

Acton touched on the drug addiction problem in Ohio as well as the period when she served the state during COVID.

“We, in this state, led the country. We flattened the curve. We saved a lot of lives, and we actually reopened earlier and got back to our lives faster because we took swift and decisive action.

“Now, it was not me who flattened the curve. … I put the hard cards on the table. I told you the truth. That seems kind of profound in this day and age. I didn’t know any better,” she quipped.

“… Ohioans’ first reaction was to run toward each other and save each other in this state.”

Acton referred to the “very corrupt Statehouse,” saying that former House Speaker Larry Householder politicized COVID and brought forth orders “that would have killed people if I had signed them.” She said he was making the orders to benefit his wife and noted that two weeks later, Householder was arrested in the FirstEnergy “dark money” scandal that sent him to federal prison.

“This is not normal,” she said, noting that a short time later she received a Profile in Courage award from Caroline Kennedy and her son, Jack. “But I need you to understand here, courage does not mean you never feel fear. … It means opening your heart, moving forward even when you feel fear.”

The 59-year-old physician vowed to fight the corruption in the Statehouse and to reach across party lines. She said she would create “North Stars” to guide the state and to set goals for Ohioans to reach for.

Acton talked about health care concerns in Ohio, including the fact that in many parts of the state, residents must travel more than an hour to deliver a baby at a hospital or to have a cavity filled by a dentist. She said Ohio needs a governor who will push back against cuts to Medicaid and fight to lower drug prices and to ensure the people have the benefits and services that they need.

She also pointed to education, noting that public education was invented in the Northwest Territory that eventually became Ohio and four other states. She pointed out that Ohio’s schools are not being funded in a fair and equitable way and said she does not believe that her opponent, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, will fight to improve education.

“My opponent got $10 million put in his PAC from a guy in Philadelphia named Yoss who wants to end public schools as we know it,” she added.

Acton said Ohio’s gross domestic product ranks 45th in the nation and that “our biggest export is young people.”

Acton said if elected, the “biggest North Star I will be working on … is our common humanity.” In a play on her last name, she said she would “Act on” love, not hate and “Act on” kindness not fear. She noted that fear and intolerance are more contagious than any virus.

“Kindness should never, ever be mistaken for weakness,” she added.

Regarding whether she is “tough enough” to serve as governor, she said her youth in Youngstown made her “scrappy” and determined. She noted that Ohio has never elected a woman as a governor or a U.S. senator.

“It is not about whether you are a woman or not,” she said, noting that to be successful a candidate must be able to raise the money, have a clear path to victory and be able to “move the levers of state government.”

She said the people of Ohio must link arms and push back together.

“The thing we all share is fighting for this democracy right now,” she said.