Vivek Ramaswamy caught trashing state he wants to govern in resurfaced video
A video has resurfaced of Trump and MAGA ally trashing the state where he's campaigning as governor.
"Ohio is a good state. I can't say it's the best state," Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said in a 2023 video that is making the rounds on social media.
According to a Friday article by the Huffington Post, the clip came from a speech delivered at Hillsdale College, a conservative Christian school, when Ramaswamy was running for president. Trump later brought him into the White House to co-chair DOGE.
Ramaswamy, in the video, is answering a question from a student from Indiana who asked him what his favorite state is. Although he says he's from Ohio in the speech, he was quick to count it out as his favorite, and he chuckles at the student saying her native Indiana is her favorite state.
His Democratic opponent in the Ohio race told the HuffPost that the comments are proof Ramaswamy is "an out-of-touch billionaire" who "calls Ohioans 'lazy' and 'mediocre,' and looks down at Ohio from the seat of his private jet." She called the comments "not surprising."
Ohio GOP Chair Alex Triantafilou downplayed the impact of Ramaswamy's comments when talking to HuffPost.
"These kinds of out-of-context 'gotcha' clips aren't going to decide the race in Ohio," he said. "Vivek is a man of ideas."
Ohio Gov. candidate Vivek Ramaswamy slams Ohio:
"Ohio is a good state, I can't say it's the best state." pic.twitter.com/NfuWT9bGT1
— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) May 1, 2026