Ramaswamy wins ohio donors who previously supported Tim Ryan for the governor

Exclusive – The republican candidate for the post of Ohio governor, Vivek Ramaswamy, boasts the support of an increasing list of eminent donors who once supported the Democrat Tim Ryan, a development that his campaign said a major political change in the state of Buckeye.

According to the Ramaswamy team, nearly $ 220,000 of the contributions made in their first months as a candidate came from people who previously gave Ryan, the former member of the Youngstown Congress who weighs an offer for the Governor. Ryan did not officially declare an offer from governor and said that he would make a decision by the end of the year.

Some of the best-known business leaders in Youngstown and Northeast Ohio, a long part of the Ryan donor network, have now changed camp, Fox News Digital learned.

Ramaswamy’s campaign highlights names, notably Caryn and Sam Covelli, a great business manager at Mahoning Valley who gave $ 10,000 to the Republican candidate after giving more than $ 59,000 to Ryan for several cycles; And Bruce Zoldan, a business manager in the Youngstown region who gave Ramaswamy $ 5,000 after contributing more than $ 53,000 to Ryan.

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Vivek Ramaswamy arrives as people are waiting for President Donald Trump to welcome the National Champions of University Football 2025 from Ohio State University at the White House at a ceremony on the South lawn on April 14, 2025. (Kayla Bartkowski / Getty Images)

Another business owner, Adam Thomarios, gave $ 10,000 and organizes a next fundraising after contributing nearly $ 17,000 to Ryan. Anthony Manna contributed $ 10,000 after giving Ramaswamy’s campaign nearly $ 25,000 to Ramaswamy’s campaign. Regina Mitchell organized fundraising and gave more than $ 13,600 in Ramaswamy after a previous contribution of $ 2,700 in Ryan in 2017.

Jeff Edwards, president and chief executive officer of Edwards, installed construction products in the Columbus region, and his wife, Lisa, gave about $ 33,000 to Ramaswamy CE cycle after contributing $ 5,800 to Ryan in 2022.

Jai Chabria, the chief strategist of Ramaswamy, told Fox News Digital that the donor movement was more than financing the campaign. He said that the Ohioans who once trusted traditional democratic leadership adopt the message of Ramaswamy’s economic growth and new ideas after decades of disappointment. In his opinion, the voters leave behind “a tired model” who has not delivered and supports someone who represents prosperity and reform.

“This is a very interesting thing where people who have been – who made a donation to the Democrats, and especially someone like Tim Ryan, and they flock to Vivek,” Chabria told Fox News Digital. “There is in fact a movement where people move not only to the Republicans, but for Vivek specifically because it has such a message of growth, economic growth.”

He argued that the momentum is visible not only in financial reports but also in the enthusiasm of the base through the State.

Vivek Ramaswamy goes on stage at CTL Aerospace on February 24, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Ramaswamy launched his Ohio governors’ campaign at the event. (Images Jon Cherry / Getty)

“I think that, like many Ohio people who have promised one thing under these institutions, and by institutions, I mean people who have been elected over and over again and have not delivered for people, I think people come to see that someone else with new ideas is what they need to invest rather than the old tired model that has not delivered for the state,” said Chabria to Fox News.

The president of the Ohio Republican Party, Alex Triantafilou, has echoed at this point, qualifying the changes of “impressive” donors and a sign of Ramaswamy’s strength as a candidate. He said that former Ryan donors now saw Ramaswamy a leader committed to workers, the reshaping of manufacturing and the strengthening of the energy independence of Ohio.

Triantafilou also underlined the early approval of the Ramaswamy GOP in May – more than a year before the primary – as unprecedented. He said it had helped consolidate a coalition that fueled republican victories on a state scale.

Fox News Digital contacted Ryan to comment.

After highlighting Ryan’s ranks, the Ramaswamy campaign also highlights its own financial stages. Ramaswamy reported the increase of $ 9.7 million between February and June, which his team calls the largest amount ever collected by a candidate for the Ohio governor during the year preceding a general election. A super Allied CAP added $ 17 million more.

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Chabria described this first report as only the “tip of the iceberg”, predicting that the next deposit will show an even greater number.

The two strategists have described fundraising and donors’ flips as part of a broader coalition that crosses traditional political lines. Chabria said that Ramaswamy’s history of business use donors because he understands their point of view, while his detailed political program shows that he is ready to govern without a steep learning curve. He highlighted priorities such as energy independence, the improvement of Ohio schools and the fight against crime in cities as problems resonating with young and old donors.

“The crime in our cities is – it is appalling. And it is something that Vivek wants to bring together all the leaders to try to address themselves because people must be able to be safe in their own house. And in too many places, they do not feel that,” Chabria told Fox News Digital. “I mean, the Democrats, the Republicans, the self -employed, they all need to feel safe at home, in their cities. So, it is certainly not a partisan problem, but sometimes it becomes one.

Tim Ryan, candidate for the Democratic Senate for Ohio, speaks to media members during an electoral evening rally in Boardman, Ohio, Tuesday, November 8, 2022. (Joshua A. Bickel / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Triantafilou stressed that the Ramaswamy agenda had a large workers’ attraction, citing its proposals on the manufacture, education and elimination of state income tax to make Ohio more competitive. He said that these ideas speak directly about the Ohioans in the middle class, in particular union workers, postal employees and delivery drivers, who could benefit from the drop in taxes and better economic conditions.

Generational change is also part of the message. At 40, Ramaswamy represents “a new era of leadership,” said Triantafilou, the contrasting with Ryan, whom he described as emblematic democrats focused on cultural debates rather than the economic concerns of ordinary voters. He argued that Ryan, who lost a race for the Senate against the candidate at the time, JD Vance in 2022, was “yesterday”, while Ramaswamy represents “tomorrow”.

Republicans already preview the contrast if Ryan is entering the governor’s breed. Triantafilou criticized him as “inauthentic”, accusing him of posture as moderate in Ohio while voting with the left in Washington. He said that the Democrats were out of step with voters on issues ranging from crime to education, and that Ryan predicts that Ryan would be spent, exceeded and ultimately defeated if he was jumping.

“Tim Ryan represents a little what is wrong with the Democratic Party,” Triantafilou told Fox News Digital. “Tim Ryan will put a hunting jacket and will be on television, then he goes to DC and votes with AOC and with the left of the party.”

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For the moment, the Ramaswamy campaign focuses on the consolidation of the early momentum. The events are planned in the fall, including a collection of October funds organized by Thomarios in Akron, while the campaign strives to extend its base through Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo, and beyond. With a record fundraising, defections of the Ryan donor network and early Ohio Gop approval, the Republicans say that Ramaswamy positioned himself as the first row in 2026.