Republican Vivek Ramaswamy has stopped airing a controversial ad in Ohio's governor's race that featured his Democratic opponent Amy Acton's estranged mother, according to the New York Post. In the spot, Donna Arthur called her daughter a "lifelong liar" and urged Ohioans not to vote for her. Ramaswamy confirmed Thursday that the ad had "run to completion" and that his campaign has moved on to four other commercials. His campaign first pledged $4 million to run it statewide, but ad tracker AdImpact found only about $1 million was spent.

The ad appears to have backfired. A Republican-commissioned poll reported by Axios found Acton leading Ramaswamy 50% to 42% among likely voters, up from a two-point edge before the ad began airing on October 19. In the survey of 800 likely voters taken October 23 to 26, 86% said they had heard about the ad. Those who knew about it said, by a two-to-one margin, that it made them more likely to back Acton. Arthur has been estranged from her daughter for nearly 50 years and disputes Acton's account of her childhood. Acton has said her stepfather sexually abused her between the ages of 10 and 12 and that her mother didn't protect her. Her stepfather was indicted, and Acton and her brother were removed from their mother's custody.

The ad drew criticism from both parties. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, who worked with Acton when she was the state's health director, called it deeply troubling and urged Ramaswamy to pull it. President Trump and Vice President JD Vance backed him, though. Trump called Acton "fair game," and Vance told critics to "stop whining." Ramaswamy had argued that Acton misrepresented her past and avoided real issues. Acton's campaign called the ad "despicable" and demanded an apology. National GOP operatives now worry the fallout could hurt Republican Sen. Jon Husted's reelection bid in a state Trump carried by 11 points.