Ramaswamy will face Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Morgan County's Heather Hill in the Republican primary for governor. Former Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton is the sole Democrat in the race so far.

The former presidential candidate is seeking the top office in his home state after a brief stint on President Trump’s cost-cutting task force alongside Elon Musk.

Vivek Ramaswamy announced Monday evening that he is running for governor of Ohio in 2026, capping a rapid-fire sequence of events in recent weeks that included the former GOP presidential candidate exiting President Donald Trump’s government efficiency effort and being passed over for the US Senate seat vacated by Vice President JD Vance.

Vivek Ramaswamy, the Cincinnati-born biotech entrepreneur who departed the Department of Government Efficiency initiative on President Donald Trump's first day, launched his bid for Ohio governor Monday with promises to institute work requirements for Medicaid and merit pay for all public school teachers and administrators.