Acton discussing both her candidacy and her campaign Recorded December 17, 2025
Amy Leigh Acton (néeStearns, formerly Beech; born February 16, 1966) is an American physician and researcher who is the Democratic nominee for governor of Ohio in the 2026 election.
Before and immediately after serving as director of the Ohio Department of Health, she worked at the Columbus Foundation. She left the foundation upon announcing her candidacy in the 2026 Ohio gubernatorial election.
Early life and education
Amy Leigh Stearns was born on February 16, 1966, in Youngstown and grew up in the north side of the city.
Acton has said that after her parents divorced and while she lived with her mother, Donna Arthur, she experienced neglect, abuse, and periods of homelessness, including spending one winter living in a tent on the north side of Youngstown. Her mother remarried Cledith Arthur, who had already been prosecuted for raping his daughter; according to Acton and her younger brother, Phil Stearns, Arthur sexually abused her. Arthur was charged with raping her when she was 12, but charges against him stalled after he fled the state and moved to Pennsylvania, despite several warrants being issued for his arrest over the next three years; Acton's mother was later convicted of felony theft by deception.
After Acton's mother lost custody of her, Acton moved in with her biological father, Gerald Stearns, and found more stability. At Liberty High School, she was inducted into the National Honor Society and was named homecoming queen during her senior year in 1984.
Acton taught at Ohio State University as an associate professor of practice in public health, as well as at the Center for Injury Research and Policy at the Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus. She worked at the Columbus Foundation as a grants manager and was director of Project LOVE (Love Our kids, Vaccinate Early), a childhood vaccination initiative started by local Columbus hospitals.
Acton was introduced to political organizing when she volunteered for the Barack Obama 2008 presidential campaign. She created a local email group for Bexley, Ohio, called "Bexley, Yes We Can!" and publicized campaign events using Facebook.
Acton with military dentist and U.S. Air National Guard Lt. Col. Timothy Stuhlmiller in 2019
In February 2019, Ohio governor Mike DeWine, a Republican, made Acton his final cabinet pick as director of the Department of Health. Acton was the first woman in the post. The two previous incumbents were a lawyer and a marketing director; DeWine mentioned wanting to "rethink how we approach this department".
In 2020, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, Acton advised DeWine, who became the first U.S. governor to close schools and limit gatherings to 100 people. Acton soon estimated that Ohio's then 5 confirmed cases likely translated to 100,000 actual cases, making national news. In mid-March, she predicted cases could peak in late April to mid-May.
On March 12, Acton said of the pandemic, "This will be the thing this generation remembers." Ohio House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes called her "the real MVP of Ohio's coronavirus response". The Dayton Daily News called her "Ohio's trusted face during the pandemic".
Acton was an advocate of postponing the 2020 Ohio Democratic presidential primary, which was slated for March 17, 2020. The day before the scheduled election, DeWine canceled it, but a judge ruled he did not have the authority to do so. Acton then ordered polling places closed due to a public health emergency. It was later determined that the election would be conducted entirely by mail-in absentee ballot for those who had not participated in early voting. In April 2020, CNN called her "the Buckeye state's version of the straight-talking Dr. Anthony Fauci".
Sign in support of Acton during pandemic
On April 1, DeWine was reported as "quick to defer to Dr. Acton for specific questions on the virus and its spread" during daily news briefings, "reminding Ohioans that the state's decisions are driven by science".
In May 2020, a group of 35 gyms sued the Ohio Department of Health, Acton, and the Lake County General Health District over COVID-related health restrictions, and Lake County Court of Common Pleas Judge Eugene Lucci issued a preliminary injunction blocking the state from "imposing or enforcing penalties solely for non-compliance with the director's order" against gyms and fitness centers, "so long as they operate in compliance with all applicable safety regulations". The state appealed the decision, but Acton had signed an order permitting gyms to reopen in the interim, and a court of appeals later dismissed the case as moot.
Beginning in May 2020, protesters began showing up at Acton's home in Columbus and at press conferences. Acton was assigned a security detail.
On May 20, 2020, the Ohio Senate unanimously voted against a proposal advanced by state House Republicans (and approved by the House on a nearly party-line vote) that would have limited the power of DeWine and Acton by restricting Ohio Department of Health orders to 14 days and requiring any extensions to be approved by a state joint legislative committee. After Republican state legislators and then-Speaker of the House Larry Householder introduced bills that she believed would violate her Hippocratic Oath, Acton resigned on June 11, and became a chief health advisor for DeWine's administration. She has said that her resignation had nothing to do with protesters or the controversy over her and DeWine's stay-at-home orders. Lance Himes succeeded her as interim director. In August, she announced she had left her position as advisor to the administration.
After her resignation, she resumed working for the Columbus Foundation. On February 4, 2021, Acton stepped down from the Columbus Foundation as she considered a run for the Senate in 2022 to succeed Rob Portman. In April 2021, she chose not to run and thanked Ohioans for an "outpouring of support".
In 2022, Acton was named president and chief executive officer of RAPID 5, a nonprofit organization that attempts to improve access to parks in Franklin County, part of the greater Columbus area. She left this position in May 2023.
In the summer of 2024, Acton attended the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, where she first expressed interest in running for governor of Ohio. On January 7, 2025, she announced her candidacy in the 2026 Ohio gubernatorial election, filing paperwork earlier that day. She is running as a Democrat.
By the end of 2025, Acton had raised over $5.3 million for her campaign. In January 2026, Acton chose David Pepper as her running mate. In February, she addressed the affordability of everyday life, specifically healthcare, saying it is "the rising cost of health care that is really putting people over the edge" and citing a reported 20% decline in Marketplace enrollment in Ohio. She suggested tools such as Medicaid and tax credits for caregivers, but also emphasized the need for cooperation with the federal government to solve the issue.
Acton was unopposed in the Democratic primary and faces Republican nominee Vivek Ramaswamy in the general election.
In June 2026, after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that upheld state laws barring transgender girls from girls' sports, Acton told The Toledo Blade that she did "not support boys playing in girls' sports", calling the issue settled law in Ohio and saying she would rather focus on affordability. The statement drew criticism from the Ohio Democratic Progressive Caucus and the nonprofit Equality Ohio. In July 2026, Acton added language to her campaign platform committing to equal protection for LGBTQ+ Ohioans and anti-discrimination laws covering sexual orientation.
In August 2026, Acton announced her support for Issue 3, a ballot measure that would add Ohio's existing photo voter identification requirement to the state constitution, breaking with most elected Democrats in Ohio. Acton said, "As this doesn't change what is already law, as governor, I will support it", while pledging to ensure all eligible voters could obtain the required identification easily and at no cost. Her position aligned with that of Ramaswamy, who had endorsed the amendment in May.
On September 6, 2026, during Acton's appearance at the Canfield Fair, a person armed with two handguns and a pair of brass knuckles lunged at Acton and injured multiple people before being subdued and arrested by her security detail; Acton was unharmed. According to the chairman of the Mahoning County Democratic Party, who witnessed the incident, the assailant shoved two campaign volunteers to the ground.
Acton has said she would cooperate with federal immigration enforcement as governor. After the Ohio Patrolmen's Benevolent Association endorsed her in August 2026, she said "we always work with the federal law enforcement," and News 5 Cleveland reported she would not stop local police from assisting ICE. She has said law enforcement should focus on violent criminals who are in the country illegally.
Awards and honors
2015: Excellence in Teaching Award, The Ohio State University College of Public Health
In 1989, Amy married Douglas Beech, with whom she had three children. The couple divorced in 2008.
In 2010, she married Eric Acton, a middle-school teacher and track coach, who had three children from a previous marriage. Together, they have a blended family of six children.
↑The Columbus Foundation, founded in 1943, focuses on improving the quality of life in central Ohio by supporting community development, arts and culture, education health, and human services
↑Koehn, Amanda (April 7, 2021) [Originally published April 6, 2021]. "Acton opts not to enter Senate race". Cleveland Jewish News. Cleveland Jewish Publishing Company. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
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