Ohio’s LGBTQ+ advocacy and legal aid organization, Equality Ohio, has changed its rating for Ohio Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton from an “A” to a “Pending.” 2026 Candidate Scorecard.
The change follows comments Acton made to the Commission Blade of Toledo June 30 following the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to uphold state bans on transgender athletes. Instead of expressing his opposition to the decision or commenting on Ohio’s ban on transgender athletes, Acton used anti-transgender language.
“I do not support boys playing girls’ sports. Ohio already has a law in place and as governor I will enforce and follow it,” Acton said. “As a doctor, public servant and mother, I will always advocate for justice and protect the health and safety of children….”
Equality Ohio announced Acton’s grade change on Tuesday along with an explanation (printed in full below):
“Comments like those recently made by Dr. Amy Acton in the Toledo Blade about transgender Ohioans are incredibly harmful. They reflect a broader pattern of transgender scapegoating, often based on data that is simply not true. National and Ohio polling consistently shows that voters reject this type of scapegoating and instead want leaders to focus on affordability, jobs and freedom from discrimination.”
As a result, we have updated Dr. Acton’s status on our 2026 Candidate Scorecard from “A” to “Pending.” This reflects our belief that accountability is still possible and that the door remains open for now. If Dr. Acton decides to take significant steps forward, we will update the status accordingly.
We remain committed to working with any candidate willing to work with LGBTQ+ communities to advance equality in Ohio.”
In July, Acton added the phrase to her campaign website: “All Ohioans deserve fair and equal treatment under the law. As Governor, I am committed to opposing discrimination and ensuring that every Ohioan – including members of the LGBT community – receives equal protection under the law.”
However, the next sentence did not include protections for gender identity or gender expression: “I will press for anti-discrimination laws to ensure that Ohioans are not unjustly fired from jobs or denied housing, other public accommodations, or equal pay because of their race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion.”
Acton’s opponent, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, received an “F” on his scorecard, indicating he has a “poor record and may harm LGBTQ+ civil rights.”
Ari Childrey – an openly transgender candidate for the Ohio House of Representatives who has publicly spoken out against Acton’s comments – said Equality Ohio “made the right decision” by changing Acton’s pay grade.
“It just proves that no candidate — I don’t care what party you belong to — gets a free pass to use harmful rhetoric against transgender youth,” Childrey told The Buckeye Flame. “I respect the integrity of this scorecard. The door is always open to Dr. Acton to step in and actually put in the work to correct her comments, but let’s be clear: the burden of proof now rests entirely with her campaign to show that she truly cares about our community.”
On July 6, the Buckeye Flame contacted Dr. Acton’s campaign staff to schedule an interview regarding her candidacy and received the following response: “Dr. Acton does not have room in her schedule for this right now. We will be in touch and let you know of any open positions.” 🔥
Ignite the action
- To register to vote or check your eligibility to vote in Ohio, click here.
- To find the contact information for your Ohio State Representative, click here.
- To find contact information for an Ohio State Senator, click here.
- If you are a newborn LGBTQ+ person in crisis, please contact Trevor’s project: 866-4-U-Trevor.
- If you are a transgender adult in need of immediate lend a hand, please contact National Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
