On Saturday, February 7, Dr. Amy Acton visited the Ohio Valley to speak to voters in Jefferson, Belmont, and surrounding counties. Acton, who is a Democrat running for governor of Ohio, spoke at Buckeye Local High School in Rayland, Ohio. At this Meet the Candidate event, she took the opportunity to let voters see who she is, where she comes from, and what she stands for.
The evening was organized by Eddie Abdalla, Chairman of the Jefferson County Democratic Party. Admission to the event was free – almost. Instead of an entrance fee, each attendee was given a voter registration form and asked to register just one person to vote. This small act alone, Abdalla noted, doubles the number of voters in the room.
Lou Gentile, a Democrat from Steubenville who represented District 30 in the Ohio Senate from 2011 to 2017, spoke highly of Dr. Acton. He praised both her integrity and her overall character. However, he was clearly most impressed with her dedication to the fight against gerrymandering here in the state of Ohio.
She was joined by David Pepper, who is running for lieutenant governor. Pepper had the pleasure of introducing Dr. Acton. Before bringing her onto the stage, he took the opportunity to make a few promises of his own to the crowd. Among these was the promise to do more listening than talking – both throughout his campaign and after being elected to office.
According to Pepper, one thing he has learned already from taking the time to really listen to Ohioans is that childcare is a serious concern. Here in the valley, parents often find themselves traveling to West Virginia for childcare due to the high costs in Ohio. Why?
“Because the people in the statehouse aren’t focused on Ohioans,” Pepper stated. This is something he and Acton would like to change.
Acton grew up in Youngstown and is no stranger to the struggles that face working people here in the valley. Pepper pointed out that she has been traveling around the state to campaign – and she has been doing so in her Jeep. Meanwhile, Vivek Ramaswamy, her Republican opponent, has been taking a corporate jet to fly from Columbus to Akron.
In Pepper’s opinion, it is obvious which candidate understands the lives of normal people and which is clearly out of touch with the working class.
When Dr. Acton took the stage, she began by telling the crowd that she is a doctor, not a politician. In fact, she began her career as a pediatrician. However, seeing the HIV rates in children drove her to turn her focus towards preventative public health. This is the path that led her to where she is today.
Not surprisingly, she is supported by the 314 Action Fund, a PAC that works to elect more scientists into political office.
Having been raised just up the river from where she was speaking, Acton said she is “a Valley girl through and through.” Her childhood was not easy, and she faced struggles that no child should. As a young girl, she experienced neglect and homelessness. Eventually, she was removed from her home. These experiences have shaped who she is today, and this is why she understands the struggles facing everyday people here in Ohio.
“I refuse to look the other way,” Acton declared. She pointed out that free breakfast and lunch for all students who attend Ohio’s public schools is an issue that has been supported unanimously. The fight we are facing is not red versus blue, or left versus right. Rather, the true enemy facing us all, as Ohioans and as Americans, is wealth and power. “It’s time for a change in Ohio,” she added.
Speaking from the heart, she said that the #1 North Star of her campaign is our “common humanity.” However, she also noted that “they keep mistaking our kindness for weakness.” But that couldn’t be further from the truth. “Kindness is a fierce commitment to justice,” Acton stated.
What came through as Dr. Acton spoke to the crowd was that what her running mate says about her is true. She doesn’t come off as an ultra-wealthy politician who has no understanding of what life is like for normal people, for everyday working Americans who are living paycheck to paycheck.
Ohio used to be the healthiest state in the nation, she pointed out. But now, many pregnant women have to travel more than an hour from their homes just to give birth. Most Ohioans are just one illness away from losing everything they have spent their lives working for. Meanwhile, Ramaswamy has the audacity to say that Medicaid and Medicare are “mistakes”.
Healthcare is not the only crisis facing the state. Acton noted that public schools in Ohio are under attack, despite the fact that public schools were created right here in our state. “We have to fund our public schools fully,” she declared. Republicans still believe in trickle-down economics, and we all know it’s BS. What we need to do is focus on strengthening our communities.
Among other issues she addressed throughout her speech were the disaster that is Citizens United, the need to get money out of politics, and the threat we face due to gerrymandering here in Ohio. She also expressed disgust at the hate and vitriol being spewed toward the Haitian community.
Dr. Acton then closed out the evening by asking those in attendance to support her bid for governor and tell Ramaswamy that “you can’t buy Ohio,” a statement that resulted in thunderous applause from the crowd. “We can want nice things again,” she promised, noting the beauty of the Great Lakes and our abundance of natural resources. “We have got to dream big again!”
Dr. Acton’s visit gave the people of the Ohio Valley a chance to see that she is not just another rich politician making promises she has no intention of keeping. She isn’t flying around in jets and vowing to rip healthcare away from Ohioans. Acton showed up and showed out, letting us see that she is a “Valley Girl” who is ready to fight unapologetically for the people of Ohio.
