Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy left a CNN anchor and reporter searching for answers Friday after leveling an unexplained accusation involving his own mother, amid mounting backlash over a controversial campaign ad.
The moment came as CNN’s Brianna Keilar and White House correspondent Alayna Treene discussed Ramaswamy’s decision to feature the estranged mother of his Democratic opponent, Amy Acton, in a campaign ad. Acton has said her stepfather sexually abused her as a child.
In the ad, Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, calls her daughter a liar. But court records show Acton’s stepfather was charged in 1978 with raping his stepdaughter, FactCheck.org reported. The ad has drawn criticism even from key Ohio Republicans.
Ramaswamy has stood by the ad and turned the accusation back on Acton.
“I do think that there has been very little to no coverage of the lies she has told about me, about my family, about my mother,” Ramaswamy said.
Earlier this week, he accused Acton of spreading “defamatory, disparaging lies about me and my family,” according to The National News Desk.
The reference to his mother appeared to catch Keilar off guard.
“So is Ramaswamy trying to say that something has been said about his mother? Is that — am I understanding that correctly, Alayna?” Keilar asked.
Treene said Ramaswamy appeared to be accusing Acton of making false claims about his mother, but that she still needed to look into exactly what he was referring to.
Keilar closed the segment by saying they would “see what he means by that.”
It was not immediately clear what remarks by Acton he was referring to. Ramaswamy did not specify.