Republicans turn against Vivek Ramaswamy as Ron DeSantis says he doesn't know why party backed him: 'He's a tech guy, Ohio is blue collar'

Outgoing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis nuked Vivek Ramaswamy following his defeat in the Ohio gubernatorial election, arguing that the Republican candidate failed to connect with the state's working-class voters because of his business background and support for foreign workers on visas. Speaking on the Sage Steele Show, DeSantis questioned why Republicans had backed Ramaswamy as their candidate in Ohio, describing the state as predominantly working-class and blue-collar."I don't know why they would have pushed him to be the candidate there. Oh, my mom's from Youngstown. Ohio is a working class state, very blue collar. You know Vivek, he's like a tech guy," DeSantis said.Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur and founder of Roivant Sciences, lost the gubernatorial race to Democratic candidate Amy Acton by 7.9 percentage points. His defeat came despite an endorsement from President Donald Trump and support from advisers close to Vice President JD Vance.DeSantis also criticized Ramaswamy's position on the H-1B visa programme, arguing that his support for bringing foreign workers to the US was unlikely to appeal to Ohio's blue-collar electorate. "He wants to bring in foreign workers on visas. That is not the type of person that's going to sell," DeSantis said.Ramaswamy advocated replacing the existing lottery-based H-1B system with a merit-based approach and previously called for the current system to be "gutted".Ramaswamy's own companies have used the H-1B programme. Roivant Sciences had 29 H-1B applications approved between 2018 and 2023. Meanwhile, Strive Asset Management, the investment firm he co-founded, moved its headquarters from Columbus to Dallas in 2025, months before he launched his gubernatorial campaign. Ramaswamy said he was no longer involved in the company's operations but remained a major shareholder.DeSantis argued that Ramaswamy had made several mistakes during the campaign and that Republicans would have performed better with a candidate more familiar with the concerns of ordinary Ohioans."I know he shot himself in the foot. I know he did a lot of other stuff to make it a real landslide against him. But even with that, it's like you know you got to meet the voters where they are on some of this stuff," he said."I think we would have done better in Ohio had we had a candidate that was more representative or more in tune with the interests of kind of these blue collar people that make the backbone of Ohio," DeSantis added.Ramaswamy campaign faced backlash over attack adRamaswamy's campaign also faced bipartisan criticism in the weeks before the election after releasing an attack advertisement featuring Acton's estranged mother. The advertisement called the Democratic candidate a "liar" and challenged her account of experiencing poverty and homelessness during childhood.The advertisement did not mention that Acton had not seen or spoken to her mother since she was 12. Her stepfather had been arrested on charges of raping her, pleaded not guilty and fled the area before trial. Court records showed authorities continued searching for him for years. Acton's brother said their mother remained married to the man until his death in 2004.Ramaswamy's defeat came alongside another Republican setback in Ohio. Republican Senate candidate Jon Husted lost to Democrat Sherrod Brown by 4.9 percentage points. The results marked a significant reversal from 2024, when Trump won Ohio by 11.2 percentage points.DeSantis takes aim at Republicans in CongressBeyond Ramaswamy's defeat, DeSantis also criticized congressional Republicans, arguing that the party had failed to deliver on its promises and was now on the defensive.He blamed lawmakers for not converting Trump's executive orders into legislation, warning that the midterm results would constrain the administration's ability to implement its agenda."Last night's elections did not only kneecap the last two years of the Trump administration, it basically ensures the four years after that are going to either be Democrat years where they have a trifecta or where you have a Republican president that is hemmed in and limited," DeSantis said.The outgoing Florida governor also pushed back against speculation about a possible 2028 presidential run, saying he would only seek office if he believed he could deliver substantial results."The only way that I would run for any office is if you can actually deliver big results. I don't want to just be a timepiece where I just sit there like a potted plant," he said.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.