Ohio State University

Ahead of Ohio's U.S. Senate and governor races, prediction market activity has drawn scrutiny from political scientists and state lawmakers who argue betting on elections undermines public trust in democracy. Ohio State professor Nathaniel Swigger warns that large discrepancies between market-implied odds and public polling in the governor's race between Amy Acton and Vivek Ramaswamy could fuel doubts about vote legitimacy if outcomes diverge from market expectations.

State Sen. Bill DeMora has introduced legislation to ban election wagering through prediction markets, noting most states already prohibit it. Kalshi, which bars politicians from trading and recently added transparency features, remains in a legal dispute with Ohio over state regulatory authority, while its advocacy arm defends prediction markets as more accurate than polling.

After Texas Railroad Commission candidate Bo French posted a screengrab mocking UT Austin's South Asian student section following the Longhorns' win over Ohio State, calling it a problem "far worse than anyone imagined," the post drew bipartisan condemnation from figures including Sen. John Cornyn, House Speaker Dustin Burrows and Karl Rove. Records show UT staff closely monitored the backlash, media inquiries and donor complaints for 36 hours before President Jim Davis issued any response, initially instructing spokespeople to withhold comment and emphasize low international-student enrollment figures.

Davis eventually echoed a UT System statement defending "all Longhorns" without directly condemning French's language. Students and faculty say the episode, alongside other campus speech controversies, reflects a broader institutional shift toward avoiding direct criticism of racism amid rising political pressure on Texas universities.

A little-known outlet called the Buckeye Bulletin, which presents itself as an Ohio local news source, has been running Facebook and Instagram ads promoting Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, including a controversial ad featuring opponent Amy Acton's estranged mother. The site has no bylines, staff list, or funding disclosure, but its social accounts are managed by the Lincoln Media Foundation, tied to the Orange County-based Lincoln Club, a major California conservative donor group.

Researchers say the tactic mirrors "pink-slime" sites the foundation ran in 2024 targeting swing states. The outlet mixes political attacks on Acton with local-news-style filler to appear legitimate, raising concerns about undisclosed partisan influence ahead of Ohio's closely watched governor's race.

Vivek Ramaswamy's Ohio gubernatorial campaign continued a statewide bus tour even as a $4 million ad featuring the estranged mother of Democratic rival Dr. Amy Acton drew bipartisan condemnation. The ad's subject, Donna Arthur, has not seen Acton since 1978; Acton has said her mother lost custody after her stepfather was indicted for raping her as a child. Every living Ohio governor, Democrat and Republican, has criticized the ad, and Gov. Mike DeWine urged Ramaswamy to pull it, while President Trump and JD Vance have defended it.

At a bus tour stop in suburban Cincinnati, Republican attendees largely shrugged off the controversy, citing concerns about border security and socialism instead. Running mate Rob McColley countered that Acton's campaign had run misleading ads against Ramaswamy. A lone protester, Ramaswamy's former junior high teacher, demonstrated outside calling for a retraction and apology.

Ohio preservation officials and state lawmakers are opposing federal permitting-reform legislation that would alter Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, a 1966 law requiring federal agencies to weigh public input before funding projects that could disturb historic sites. Supporters of the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act, now in the U.S. Senate, say streamlining permitting would speed energy and infrastructure projects. Critics, including Ohio's State Historic Preservation Officer Diana Welling and Heritage Ohio's Frank Quinn, warn it would strip state and tribal preservation offices of consultation power, shifting decisions entirely to federal agencies. State Sen. Andrew Brenner introduced a bipartisan resolution, co-sponsored by Sen. Bill DeMora, urging Congress to reject the changes.

Ohio voters are reporting growing frustration with the sheer volume of political advertising ahead of November's election, even as campaign spending reaches record levels. According to AdImpact, the Ohio U.S. Senate race has drawn $88 million in TV ad spending since September 1, including $47.3 million in a single week in late September and early October. Spending is projected to rise roughly 70% over 2024 levels.

Ohio State University researchers note ads rarely change voters' minds but remain a cost-effective way to reach undecided voters in close statewide races like Ohio's Senate and governor's contests. Repetition helps messages stick despite fading attention, but experts warn the barrage can backfire, breeding annoyance or even discouraging turnout. Ads are starting earlier each cycle, partly due to increased early voting, and attack ads increasingly dominate over positive messaging. Because political speech is constitutionally protected, false or misleading claims in ads are largely unregulated, including AI-generated content and online advertising. Experts urge voters to research candidates independently rather than rely solely on campaign messaging.

A bipartisan Ohio Safer Communities Legislative Working Group has released a report calling for major reforms to the state's domestic violence laws, following what it identified as Ohio's deadliest year in at least a decade for intimate partner violence — 157 fatalities, including 95 victims and 62 perpetrators. Domestic violence affects roughly 189,000 Ohioans annually and costs the state more than a billion dollars a year.

Recommendations include standardizing police risk assessments for survivors, expanding trauma-informed forensic nursing, mandating training to recognize strangulation as a predictor of lethal violence, and eliminating Ohio's statute of limitations for child sexual abuse cases — a change advocates say would align Ohio with 44 other states. The group also backs Senate Bill 421, which would extend the civil statute of limitations for reporting sexual assault from one year to five, with some advocates pushing to abolish such limits entirely. Legislators say the report will guide the incoming governor and General Assembly, with legislation possible before year's end.