Ohio Democrats’ path to the governor’s office runs through rural areas that had turned against them

MARIETTA, Ohio (AP) — Speaking to a small gathering of supporters as the Ohio River flowed behind her, Dr. Amy Acton announced she was backing a three-year moratorium on permitting new injection wells for fracking in rural Washington County.

It’s an issue that is top of mind for voters worried that their groundwater here is being polluted by the industry’s waste. Acton, the Democratic candidate for governor, is tapping into the angst as part of her appeal to conservative areas that she hopes will be part of a victory in the Republican-leaning state.

“This is not a partisan issue, that we need to protect our water," she told a crowd of about two dozen gathered at a riverfront gazebo, adding that cleanup costs could be well over $1 billion. “We will all pay for this mistake. So that's why we must act now.”

She got some help during the recent appearance, Acton's fourth to the Appalachian county that hasn’t backed Democrats in years. She was joined by Susan Vessels, a prominent local Republican who had decided to forgo her own party’s nominee for governor, tech billionaire and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

Vessels, president of the city council in Marietta, praised Acton for her willingness to listen to local residents’ concerns about the risks posed by fracking.

“It is a pro-drinking water position, and it should be easy for any leader to support,” Vessels said.

Ramaswamy has been a strong supporter of developing American energy sources, including through fracking: “Unlock American energy. Drill, frack, burn coal, embrace nuclear,” he said during a 2024 presidential debate. More recently in Marietta, he said he wants an economic boom that protects Ohio’s natural resources and “the water quality of our communities.”

Vessels said she and others concerned about the impacts of the injection wells have been frustrated in their attempts to get lawmakers to listen.

“The fact that we have yet to receive any response from our Republican state representatives and our state senators tells me that we have a political problem and not just a scientific one,” she said.

Acton has been campaigning throughout Ohio, with a focus on areas that have been voting Republican, especially since President Donald Trump emerged on the political stage. It's a nod to the reality of Democrats trying to win a statewide race in Ohio, a former swing state where Republicans dominate the Legislature, hold all statewide offices and elected two Republicans for the U.S. Senate.

The last time a Democrat won the governor’s race in Ohio was 2006.

Both Acton and Ramaswamy know that victory on Nov. 3 depends on winning in rural places like Marietta, the seat of a county where local leaders see recent swings toward Republicans appearing to be softening.

As they vie to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, each is trying to appeal to those voters against a backdrop of dissatisfaction over rising gas, grocery and healthcare costs, the war in Iran and AI data centers. Surveys show rural Americans are deeply distressed about the state of the economy.

Acton, the state’s health director during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, marched in Marietta's Fourth of July parade marking the nation's 250th anniversary. Ramaswamy, who has been endorsed by Trump, hosted a veterans' town hall there on the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

“Voters are frustrated, and it's not just with one political party," Ramaswamy campaign manager Jonathan Ewing said. “They're frustrated by an insider system that they see as working for one connected class of people and not for them.” He said "Vivek's from outside that system. He can't be bought, and that resonates with people."

Ramaswamy, who has landed endorsements from farming groups and the National Rifle Association, also made a stop at Schafer Leather, a thriving downtown business where customers can buy cowboy boots, wallets, belts or a Gun Tote'n Mama handbag. Staff members say they're fully in the GOP nominee's corner, despite concerns over the soaring price of gas since Trump launched the Iran war.

Sherry Bailey, the store's 62-year-old sales clerk, said her core values align best with the GOP.

"I believe in the Lord and the family and being free Americans," she said.

That sort of party loyalty has only seemed to grow in Ohio during the Trump era, as he has won increasing shares of the vote in counties such as Washington, where he got 71% support in 2024.

But Ohio Democrats aren't letting that discourage them. The party has a strategy to rebuild trust among voters outside the cities and suburbs, from Appalachia to western Ohio farm country.

They say rural areas such as Marietta, where residents are now represented by Republican majorities from their county commissions to the statehouse to Congress, are growing weary of one-party rule.

A statewide listening tour involving hundreds of voters across parties last year led Democrats to believe that people in three distinct groups can be persuaded, said Chris Gibbs, chair of the Ohio Democrats Rural Caucus. They identified disaffected Democrats, engaged but undecided independents and legacy Republicans, who he defined as those “disgusted with how they’ve seen their party go into the MAGAsphere.”

Democrats say new tariffs imposed under Trump, war-related increases in gas and fertilizer prices and Medicaid cuts to rural hospitals have particularly upset rural voters.

Among the converts is independent Scott Oancea. As he awaited his turn at the pool table at Marietta Moose Lodge 1823 on a recent afternoon, the 64-year-old retired graphic designer said he voted once for Trump but will be supporting Democrats up and down the ticket this year.

“I would vote as much as I can against Trump, to neutralize him,” he said. “I’m shocked by what’s happening. It’s an insane situation. He wants to tear down buildings that have been there for 50 years. Nobody else has ever even thought of doing that — they have better things to do.”

He said his decision will include supporting Acton.

Acton has not only taken on Republican policies that she says have driven up costs and made life more difficult for average Ohioans. She's also taken positions that appeal more to middle-of-the road voters than the progressive ones who dominated some of the party's primaries in other states this year.

She has said she does not support transgender athletes competing in female sports and said local law enforcement agencies should cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

As she tries to widen her appeal in the state, Acton has toured rural hospitals, where she has spoken to patients, nurses and administrators about access to healthcare and the state's alarming number of maternity care deserts. She has spent time on family farms, where she has heard farmers' appeals to preserve soil and water conservation districts, mental health programming through extension districts and youth programs such as 4-H.

“We’ve seen the scene repeat everywhere I go," she said during a tour of a soybean farm in July. "I go places that Dems haven’t been in a while and we’re seeing tons of Republicans cross over, and independents, too.”

Acton said most of the issues important to Ohioans don't fall along party lines. Many people she meets say they are exhausted by today's politics.

Vessels said she’s watched firsthand as party differences have begun to fade for many voters over the last year and a half. She cited the opposition she’s expressed to a controversial data center deal struck by local leaders and to locating injection wells near Marietta's municipal drinking water aquifer — positions that have alienated her from some local party leaders but not residents.

“I go to the grocery store and people, Democrat and Republican alike, say thank you for working on this,” she said. “I think we have a lot more in common than we don’t.”

UAW Local 402 members including Joe Penwell, left, have a drink at Fricker's restaurant and bar in Springfield, Ohio, on Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, on old Navistar's last day at its Springfield plant. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

An American flag is posted on the register at Fricker's restaurant and bar in Springfield, Ohio, on Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, as UAW Local 402 members have a drink on old Navistar's last day at its Springfield plant. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Morgan Hughes, left, and Jordan "JoJo" Burkhard, right, both members of UAW Local 402, in Springfield, Ohio, canvas for votes in Kettering, Ohio, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Morgan Hughes, left, and Jordan "JoJo" Burkhard, right, both members of UAW Local 402, in Springfield, Ohio, drive through Dayton Ohio, as they canvas for votes Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Members of UAW Local 402 gather outside their union hall, in Springfield, Ohio, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, old Navistar's last day at its Springfield plant. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Morgan Hughes, left, and Jordan "JoJo" Burkhard, right, both members of UAW Local 402, in Springfield, Ohio, talks with Barry Milligan, center, as his dog Lorna, looks out form the doorway, as Jughes and Burkhard canvas for votes in Kettering, Ohio, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton speaks during a campaign event at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, right, shakes the hand of President Donald Trump after speaking during an event at Butler High School in Vandalia, Ohio, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton speaks during a campaign event along the Ohio River, in Marietta, Ohio, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks during a midterm election rally, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton visits with supporters during a campaign event along the Ohio River, in Marietta, Ohio, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

ADEN, Yemen (AP) — Forces of Yemen’s internationally recognized government began a major offensive Monday against the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels on the country's Red Sea coast, under an intensified air campaign by the Saudi-led coalition.

The offensive came just after the rebels said they had captured more territory in the southwestern part of Yemen, taking a key town in a blow to the Saudi-backed forces as they advanced toward a strategic provincial capital in the region.

The Saudi-led coalition spokesman, Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki, said 100 fighter jets were providing support to the forces of Yemen’s internationally recognized government fighting against the Houthis. He said the coalition has secured “air protection” of the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait and destroyed hundreds of Houthi targets as part of the ongoing campaign.

The campaign and its details could not be immediately independently verified.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that it was expected that the Saudi-backed government in Yemen would hit back at the rebels to reclaim territory. Asked if the Saudi-led coalition coordinated the action with the United States, Rubio said that Saudi Arabia and the U.S. have a defense agreement but wouldn’t offer more details.

He said the Yemeni government was ousted from some of its territory by a Houthi campaign and the Saudis have come under attack, and “they have a right to defend themselves."

The U.S. has provided support to Saudi Arabia in its ongoing campaign against the Houthis, according to a regional official and a U.S. official. This U.S. support included intelligence sharing, target identification and planning for the offensive, said the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak to reporters.

The U.S. had supported the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis early in the Yemen war, before quitting the coalition in recent years.

The Houthi rebels seized the town of Turbah on Sunday, shortly before the internationally recognized government announced a major military operation against them.

The escalation between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis has revived Yemen’s civil war after a four-year ceasefire.

Turbah sits on a main road linking the provincial capital of Taiz with the port city of Aden, which serves as an interim seat of Yemen's government. Over the years, the town was a major post for the government forces defending Taiz against the Houthis.

Earlier, the Houthis seized several villages and areas on Taiz's outskirts in a series of advances, paving the way for the rebels to encircle Taiz, Yemen’s third-largest city.

The Houthis made a swift push on the country's western coast on the Red Sea in early September. They captured the strategic city of Mokha and several Red Sea islands, gains that enabled them to control the Yemeni side of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial chokepoint through which 12% of global trade transits.

In its announcement Sunday, the Saudi-backed government said it was mobilizing troops across government-held areas.

Rashad al-Alimi, head of the ruling Presidential Leadership Council, said in a televised speech that the operations were aiming at “recovering the remaining territories” controlled by the Houthis. He called on the international community to provide support to his government.

Hours after al-Alimi’s declaration, a Saudi military spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki, vowed “full operational support” to the Yemeni government forces, until the Houthis are “eliminated.”

Al-Malki also stressed Saudi Arabia’s right to take all necessary measures to deter the rebels who continued to fire missiles and drones at the kingdom as part of the nearly three-month escalation that revived Yemen’s civil war.

On Monday, factions allied with the Saudi-backed coalition fighting the Houthis said they launched offensives against the rebels on the eastern flank of the coastal areas that the Houthis had seized in their latest advances.

They attacked Houthi positions in the town of Dhubab, on the coast of the Bab el-Mandeb strait, said Col. Majed al-Nazili, spokesman for the Saudi-backed forces.

The Giants Brigades, a government-allied group, said it began a “decisive military operation against the Houthi militias,” also in the Bab el-Mandeb area.

Al-Alimi said in a post on X on Monday that the operation — dubbed “Yemen Dawn” — has started with the aim of “restoring state institutions, liberating" Sanaa, Yemen’s rebel-controlled capital, and ending "the Houthi terrorist militia coup.”

Al-Nazili said government forces were carrying out a “strategic offensive” on Sanaa. The Houthi media office reported multiple airstrikes by the Saudi coalition on their territories, including Sanaa.

The latest flare-up began in mid-July, when the Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of bombing the airport in Sanaa to prevent the landing of an unauthorized Iranian flight. The rebels responded with missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia and the Yemeni government forces in the country.

They also announced a blockade on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea and attacked several Saudi-linked vessels.

Then in September, they intensified their campaign, storming down the Red Sea coast in their biggest land grab in years.

The rebels' taking of Turbah “will likely severely constrain Yemeni government-aligned forces’ ability to reinforce and resupply front-line positions” across Taiz province and the provincial capital of Taiz, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank.

“Disrupting resupply has military value, of course, but controlling all the roads in and out of areas to the north of Turbah also prevents government forces from retreating out of the city,” the think tank wrote in a Sunday analysis.

Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis descended from their northern stronghold, capturing Sanaa and forcing the government to flee into exile in Saudi Arabia. The war created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters and killed more than 150,000 people.

The latest bout of violence has killed at least 959 people and wounded over 4,200 others, according to the World Health Organization. The flare-up forced about 174,097 people to flee their homes inside Yemen, according to the U.N. migration agency. More than 3,000 others fled across the waters into Djibouti, the agency reported.

Last week, Yemen’s health ministry — part of the internationally recognized government — warned about the conflict’s impact on health facilities and medical staff across Taiz province. The ministry said in a statement on Friday that health facilities in coastal, western and southern areas of the province have closed or are barely partially functioning.

Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report.

A tea seller pours milk from a can as he prepares tea at a market in Houthi-controlled Sanaa, Yemen, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

Yemeni civilians celebrate while riding in the back of a pickup truck in the Bani Matar district, Yemen, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026, as they follow a convoy carrying Houthi prisoners freed in Mokha on its way to Sanaa following the Houthi takeover of the southern Red Sea port city. (AP Photo/STR)

A man walks inside a damaged sponge factory in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)