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The 2026 midterms have taken a deeply personal turn as campaigns use other people's family tragedies as political ammunition — sometimes over the objections of the families themselves. Why it matters: Some attack ads feature photographs of murdered children and anguished 911 calls, forcing grieving families to relive their worst moments. Georgia governor race: Republican gubernatorial nominee Rick Jackson used images of murdered 8-year-old Secoriea Turner and her mother's anguished 911 call to attack Democratic rival Keisha Lance Bottoms, Atlanta's former mayor. Turner's family demanded the ads come down, accusing the campaign of exploiting their grief without permission. Jackson said he would keep airing them . Ohio governor race: Ohio Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign is spending $4 million on an ad featuring the estranged mother of his Democratic opponent, Amy Acton. In the ad, Donna Arthur calls her daughter a liar and disputes her account of childhood homelessness. Acton says her late stepfather — who was married to her mother until his death — sexually abused her as a child, and she hasn't spoken to her mother in decades. Acton's brother corroborated her account , while court records and contemporary news reports support key details. President Trump urged Ramaswamy to keep running his attack on Acton, despite objections from some fellow Republicans. Between the lines: Ramaswamy's campaign said the ad tested well with persuadable voters , even as critics warned it could backfire. Ohio Senate race: A Republican attack ad against former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown featured images of a couple and their 1-year-old son killed in a highway crash to blame Brown's immigration policies. The victims' family demanded its removal , saying nobody sought permission to use their relatives' images or tragedy. North Carolina Senate race: A Republican super PAC featured a grieving father in an attack ad linking the murder of his 23-year-old son to former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper's prison policies. The father said he felt deceived about the ad's purpose. The group disputes his account, while fact-checkers found no connection between the killer and Cooper's prisoner-release agreement. Yes, but: Some survivors willingly share their trauma to challenge politicians' decisions. In Nebraska, Jody Snogren voluntarily appeared in an ad attacking Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts for his 2022 vote to pardon John Arias, who pleaded guilty to raping her. Snogren told The 19th she chose to tell her story to inform voters and had no regrets. Ricketts expressed sympathy for Snogren but defended the pardon , noting Arias had served his full sentence and the pardon came decades after the crime.

From Vivek Ramaswamy's toxic Ohio ad to Ken Paxton's AI-generated spots in Texas, the 2026 midterms are now drowning in political attack ads.

Obama targeted GOP gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who has doubled down on an ad featuring the estranged mother of Democratic rival Dr. Amy Acton.

CLEVELAND — Former President Barack Obama excoriated Ohio Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy for his attack ad with Democratic opponent Amy Acton’s estranged mother during his first rally of the 2026 midterm election cycle in Cleveland. “There is no line he will not cross, no low he will not sink to, to try to get […]

President Trump on Friday doubled down on his support for Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy's attack ad against Amy Acton featuring Acton's estranged mother. Mr. Trump also headed to the Sunshine State to campaign for Florida gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds. CBS News' Cristian Benavides and Ed O'Keefe have more.

President Trump spoke to reporters outside the White House before heading to a campaign stop in Florida.

Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy released a controversial attack ad featuring opponent Amy Acton's mother. President Trump repeatedly defended the ad, despite bipartisan backlash. CBS News' Weijia Jiang reports, plus Ed O'Keefe takes a look at other midterm elections to watch.

President Trump intensified the furor over a deeply controversial political ad on Thursday, backing the decision by the GOP’s gubernatorial candidate in Ohio, Vivek Ramaswamy, to run the commercial. In doing so, Trump poured fresh fuel on a bitter midterm campaign that has seen the president deride the Democratic candidate for Senate in Michigan, Abdul...

The midterm elections on November 3 are currently dominating national media coverage. Within that coverage, several religious strands have emerged. Whether it’s Rev. Adam Hamilton running for Senate in Kansas, seminarian James Talarico running for Senate in Texas, Hindu Vivek Ramaswamy in Ohio, or Muslim Abdul El-Sayed running for Senate in Michigan, religion is unavoidably ...

Billionaire Jeff Yass gave almost $110 million to boost Republicans in the US midterm elections, making him the third-largest individual donor of this cycle and the top financial backer of embattled Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

In Cincinnati, the vice president said it was "not really my concern" whether the controversial 60-second spot was appropriate, and said he was focused on supporting Republican candidates in their midterm races.

The GOP has a midterm messaging problem. Ramaswamy isn’t helping lead image