St. Xavier Alumni Demand Ramaswamy Remove Acton Mother Ad

More than 3,100 alumni from St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati signed an online petition this week. The graduates, all from the private Jesuit institution where Vivek Ramaswamy graduated in 2003, are asking the Republican governor candidate to remove a specific campaign advertisement. The signatories include family members and friends of the school as well as current graduates.

The petition specifically targets a spot that aired last week as part of a $4 million broadcast and digital campaign. The ad features Donna Arthur, the mother of Democratic candidate Amy Acton. Arthur lost custody of Acton and her brother Philip Stearns in 1978 after leaving the state with her husband, who was charged with raping 12-year-old Acton. Acton has stated she has not spoken to her mother since that time.

In the commercial, Arthur claims her daughter lies about her past and urges Ohio voters against Acton. The spot was initially leaked on social media early last week. While President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have defended the advertisement, the public reaction has been largely critical. The petition calls for Ramaswamy to take the ad down and issue a public apology. It asks him to apologize for using family trauma and domestic abuse in an electoral race.

The document also requests that Ramaswamy commit to debating policies and records. It criticizes him for resorting to personal cruelty that violates the school’s foundational standard of being a Man for Others. Brian Cahill, a 1983 graduate and one of the petition organizers, said the message is about human decency rather than politics. He emphasized that the group is not partisan.

Cahill noted that St. Xavier High School is not officially involved in the petition and has not taken a stand on the advertisement. He said the alumni respected the school’s position but felt they could not remain silent while their reputation was affected. The idea for the petition arose from texts among alumni discussing the controversy in light of the school’s motto. Students are taught that their decisions affect the community and that they must be careful not to hurt it.

Cahill said he and his former classmates began questioning Ramaswamy’s conduct when he ran for president for the first time. He expressed concern that Ramaswamy endorsed the ad and doubled down on it after critics called it abhorrent. A message seeking comment from the Ramaswamy campaign was not returned.