Ohio governor candidate Amy Acton ‘lunged at’ by armed person at fair, campaign says

CANFIELD, OHIO: Ohio Democratic nominee for governor Dr Amy Acton was “lunged at” by an “armed individual” in an incident that left multiple people injured, according to a statement from her campaign. 

The incident took place at around 2.30 pm on Sunday, September 6, while Acton was visiting the annual Canfield Fair in Canfield, a suburb of Youngstown, according to a statement from the sheriff’s spokesperson, Gerry Ricciutti.

Acton and her husband, Eric Acton, “are grateful for the swift and decisive action of law enforcement and are praying for the recovery of those injured,” said Addie Bullock, the campaign’s spokesperson.

“This kind of violence has no place in Ohio,” Bullock added. “Dr. Acton will always stand up to the chaos, hate, and vitriol that pits us against one another.”

The armed man forced his way through attendees toward Amy Acton

Acton was addressing the crowd when the armed individual, identified as Patrick Havas, who lives in Canfield, approached with a cellphone set up to record the visit.

“As he was entering the tent, Havas started pushing his way through the crowd,” Ricciutti added. “Dr. Acton’s security detail, which was made up of Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers, confronted Havas, and as that was happening, two people were knocked to the ground.”

Acton, a physician, was unharmed and stayed at the scene to help one of the injured attendees, according to a photo shared with NBC News by someone who was at the event.

After law enforcement arrested Havas, officers recovered two handguns and a pair of brass knuckles, Ricciutti said.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol, which provides security for Acton as a gubernatorial candidate, said in a separate statement that Havas also had a Taser. Investigators said Havas did not brandish any of the weapons or remove them from their holsters.

Havas was booked at the Mahoning County Jail “on charges of disorderly conduct and two counts of assault,” according to the Highway Patrol statement.

Bipartisan leaders denounce attack on Amy Acton

Acton’s rival GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who is using campaign rallies and advertising to criticize the state’s former public health director, denounced the attack as unacceptable.

“Candidates should be able to meet with voters without having to worry about threats or violence. What happened today is completely unacceptable and has no place in politics, and we hope that no one was hurt,” Ramaswamy’s communications director, Connie Luck, said in a statement on Sunday.

Christopher Anderson, chair of the Mahoning County Democratic Party, immediately condemned the incident as “political violence in all forms.”

“Let me be clear — The Mahoning County Democratic Party abhors political violence in all forms,” Anderson said in a post to social media. “What happened at our tent today during today’s visit from Dr. Acton is reprehensible and should be condemned by leaders on all sides of the aisle.”

Ohio Gov Mike DeWine also denounced the incident, saying he and his wife had spoken to Acton and that they were grateful she was not hurt.

“Violence or the threat of violence at political or public events is always unacceptable,” DeWine said. “This case is now in the hands of law enforcement and will be investigated thoroughly.”

Abdul El-Sayed, Michigan’s Democratic US Senate candidate, also condemned the attack.

“There’s no place for political violence in America,” El-Sayed wrote in a social media post. “Our prayers go out to Dr. Acton and her team, and we hope that this moment is yet another wake up call regarding how important it is to make sure that democracy is a process by which we address our political differences peacefully.”