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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.

If Ramaswamy goes down, Trump will spin it that Democrats and the corrupt media misrepresented the ad and lied about Ramaswamy.

Why Vivek Ramaswamy's ad could backfire

The attack ad featuring Amy Acton’s estranged mother shows how “outrage marketing" is shaping modern elections.

"It's a mother speaking badly against Amy Acton," Trump said.

Republican Vivek Ramaswamy on Friday defended his campaign's ad featuring the estranged mother of Democratic rival Dr. Amy Acton in the closely watched race for Ohio governor.

Speaking at a campaign stop, Ramaswamy said the advertisement, which features Acton's mother calling her "a liar," had nothing to do with childhood abuse.

In today’s edition, Jonathan Allen digs into the fallout from a controversial ad that has roiled Ohio politics.

In the ad, which first circulated on social media Monday night, Democrat Amy Acton's estranged mother called her a liar.

Ohio Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton has become the second-highest fundraiser on the Democrat-aligned platform ActBlue this week, as controversy over a campaign advertisement featuring her estranged mother draws national attention to the race. Acton is challenging Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in the contest to succeed term-limited Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH). The race made headlines this […]

"It's wrong to run this ad," DeWine said.

Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) is urging Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy to pull an advertisement featuring the estranged mother of his Democratic opponent, Amy Acton. DeWine, who is term-limited and cannot seek reelection, has backed Ramaswamy to succeed him in the governor’s mansion despite the controversy surrounding the advertisement. Speaking to reporters at the Statehouse […]

Ohio candidate for governor Vivek Ramaswamy is facing strong criticism for releasing an attack ad featuring his opponent Amy Acton's estranged mother. CBS News political director Fin Gómez has more.

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) called a controversial political ad run by Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy (R) “shameful,” saying she thinks it will hurt Republicans up and down the ballot in Ohio. “This ad is going to go down as the most shameful, disgusting, offensive ad this election season,” Mace told CNN’s Jake Tapper on...

This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day. Subscribe here. There are low blows, and then there are rock-bottom blows. The latest attack ad in the Ohio governor’s race is undoubtedly the latter. Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is spending $4 million to air […]

Robby Soave and Amber Duke react to Vivek Ramaswamy's new campaign ad against opponent Amy Acton.

Republicans privately say the ad featuring Amy Acton’s estranged mother has already backfired

Questions about the video will likely shadow Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, a biotech billionaire who previously ran for president but has never before held public office, in the final two weeks of the contest.

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.

Republican biotech entrepreneur and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is facing bipartisan backlash over a $4 million advertisement he supported against his Democratic opponent in the campaign to be Ohio’s next governor.

A new attack ad in the Ohio gubernatorial election between Amy Acton and Vivek Ramaswamy shows Acton’s mother claiming that Acton has misrepresented

Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is going all in on the explosive ad rocking the ugly race for the governor’s mansion. Ramaswamy’s campaign accepted responsibility and is pouring $4 million behind the bombshell ad, which features the estranged mother of his opponent, Ohio Democrat gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton, calling her daughter a “liar” and ...

“It is an ad from our campaign,” Ramaswamy said of the blistering 1-minute spot, in which Donna Arthur – Acton’s mother – accused her daughter of being a “liar” and embellishing claims of abuse she allegedly suffered as a child.