Ramaswamy race swings to ‘Lean Democrat’ as GOP braces for ‘collateral damage’

Republican Vivek Ramaswamy’s race for Ohio governor swung to “Lean Democrat” in an election forecaster’s ratings as Republicans braced for damage beyond his campaign.On Friday, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report moved the race out of its Toss Up column after Ramaswamy’s campaign ran an ad featuring his opponent’s estranged mother.In the ad, Donna Arthur calls her daughter, Democratic nominee Amy Acton, “a liar,” the Associated Press reported. Arthur lost custody of her children after their stepfather was indicted on a charge of raping Acton, the AP added.Cook editor Jessica Taylor wrote that the ad confirmed the race was “slipping away” from Ramaswamy as Cook moved it to “Lean Democrat,” a rating Cook uses for competitive races where one party has an edge.A Cook poll taken Oct. 9-13, before the ad surfaced, had Acton ahead 49% to 44%, NBC4 reported. A Fox News poll taken Oct. 15-19, also before the ad...