Dr. Amy Acton, who helped lead Ohio’s early pandemic response, is weighing 2026 run for governor

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Dr. Amy Acton, the former Ohio health director who became a household name during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, says she is considering a run for governor in 2026.

Acton shared her deliberations with reporters during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Tuesday.

“I have experience I just want to give back, and this is a time of my life where I can,” the physician and public health expert told cleveland. com. Acton, a Democrat, said she learned a lot about how the governor's office runs while serving in Republican Gov. Mike DeWine's administration, appearing at his side during televised daily coronavirus briefings in early 2020.

“I always am just really focused on how I can best be of service," she told the USA Today Network Ohio Bureau. "Obviously, I’m not a politician. I used to joke that I’m the Ted Lasso of politics.”

Acton's role as state health director threw her into the statewide, and even national, spotlight for a time.

She gained praise from many for how she combined expertise with a comforting demeanor, reassuring residents huddled at home in fear of the deadly virus.

Acton also had her critics. She wielded broad emergency powers during the pandemic to sweeping effect. Among her actions were halting the state's presidential primary, closing down Ohio's gyms and fitness centers and imposing stay-at-home orders as she and DeWine worked to prevent COVID's spread.

She resigned the job after a grueling period of public exposure, demonstrations, lawsuits and personal attacks, but never lost her interest in public service. Acton briefly considered a run for U.S. Senate in 2021.

Republicans already positioning to run for governor in two years, when DeWine must leave office due to term limits, include Lt. Gov. Jon Husted and Attorney General Dave Yost.