(../../../../favicon_aje.ico) Armed assailant attacks Ohio Democratic candidate during campaign stop | US Midterm Elections 2026 News | Al Jazeera    (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/7/armed-assailant-attacks-ohio-democratic-candidate-during-campaign-stop)                                             (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2026/9/7/armed-assailant-attacks-ohio-democratic-candidate-during-campaign-stop)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/ap_6a9e146d5e184-1788744813.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)  (../../../../wp-content/uploads/2026/09/ap_6a9e146d5e184-1788744813.jpg@resize=770,513&quality=80)     (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org/scripttemplates/otSDKStub.js) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (../../../../static/css/vendor~main~d08ff9cb.24bf1742.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~748942c6.6c6e15fe.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~b07b7304.e3bc53a0.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~6e6dca10.74fd263a.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~5db14389.c7afea12.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/media/Roboto-Bold.52bb58c8.woff2) (../../../../static/media/Roboto-Regular.c5bf51b6.woff2)  (../../../../static/css/vendor~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-blo~5f903362.2e08e417.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~41c72a2c.3f309873.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~06be7c11.0625e98d.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/pages/article-page~493df0b3.accd71c7.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)   Skip links (armed-assailant-attacks-ohio-democratic-candidate-during-campaign-stop@traffic_source=rss.html#main-content-area) Skip to Content  (https://www.aljazeera.com/)          (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Sign up  Show navigation menu     Navigation menu (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News    Show more news sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/africa/) Africa   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia/) Asia   (https://www.aljazeera.com/us-canada/) US & Canada   (https://www.aljazeera.com/latin-america/) Latin America   (https://www.aljazeera.com/europe/) Europe   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia-pacific/) Asia Pacific      (https://www.aljazeera.com/middle-east/) Middle East   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/explainer/) Explained   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sports) Sport   (https://www.aljazeera.com/opinion/) Opinion   (https://www.aljazeera.com/videos/) Video   More   Show more sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/features/) Features   (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/) Economy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/human-rights/) Human Rights   (https://www.aljazeera.com/climate-crisis) Climate Crisis   (https://www.aljazeera.com/investigations/) Investigations   (https://www.aljazeera.com/interactives/) Interactives   (https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/) In Pictures   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/science-and-technology/) Science & Technology   (https://www.aljazeera.com/audio/podcasts) Podcasts   (https://www.aljazeera.com/travel) Travel   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored/) Sponsored Content        (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Click here to search search     Sign up        (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News |(https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/us-midterm-elections-2026/) US Midterm Elections 2026   Armed assailant attacks Ohio Democratic candidate during campaign stop Patrick Havas, 38, arrested with weapons after injuring several at Ohio Democrat Amy Acton’s campaign stop.   Listen   Listen (3 mins)       Save       Share Armed assailant attacks Ohio Democratic candidate during campaign stop on social media share-nodes    Share (https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fng6q21) facebook      (https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Armed%20assailant%20attacks%20Ohio%20Democratic%20candidate%20during%20campaign%20stop&source=sharethiscom&related=sharethis&via=AJEnglish&url=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fng6q21) x    (whatsapp://send?text=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fng6q21) whatsapp-stroke    (https://aje.news/ng6q21)  copylink          google       Add Al Jazeera on Google  info      (Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dr. Amy Acton speaks at a primary election night campaign event after winning the party's nomination for governor on May 5, 2026, in Columbus, Ohio. [Jay LaPrete/AP Photo])   Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton speaks at a primary election night campaign event after winning the party's nomination for governor on May 5, 2026, in Columbus, Ohio [Jay LaPrete/AP Photo]   By  APand Reuters   Published On 7 Sep 2026 7 Sep 2026    An armed assailant in the United States attacked the Democratic candidate for Ohio governor, Amy Acton, during a campaign stop at the Canfield Fair, injuring several people, campaign officials said. The individual lunged at Acton as she was speaking on Sunday. Acton was unharmed after the incident, campaign spokesperson ⁠⁠Addie Bullock said in a statement.     The suspect, Patrick Havas, 38, was arrested with multiple weapons after knocking volunteers to the ground, according to a statement from Mahoning County Democratic Party chairman Chris Anderson.        The Ohio State Highway Patrol, which made the arrest, said Havas had two pistols and a Taser before he was stopped by troopers. Police officers from Mahoning County said two handguns and a set of brass knuckles were recovered after the incident. Havas was booked on charges of disorderly conduct and two counts of assault at the county jail, but no other details were available pending an investigation, the highway patrol added. The suspect knocked ⁠⁠down two older adults during the ⁠⁠incident, Sheriff Jerry Greene told local NBC outlet 21 News. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine condemned the attack in a statement and said Ohio police at the fair quickly responded to the incident at the Mahoning County Democratic booth. DeWine, a Republican, is unable to run for re-election because of term limits. Acton’s Republican opponent in the general election, Vivek Ramaswamy, called Sunday’s attack “completely unacceptable” in a campaign statement. Ramaswamy, leveraging national name recognition and alliances with the tech industry and President Donald Trump, has raised record funds and spent on advertisements criticising Acton.     Federal political committees spent more than $40m on security during the 2023–2024 campaign cycle, according to the most recent publicly available data cited by the nonpartisan group Public Service Alliance. Advertisement    A Trump-backed political group (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/5/trump-backed-group-announces-10m-ad-spend-for-midterm-senate-race-in-texas) recently announced it will spend $10m on television and digital advertisements in the state of Texas ahead of the upcoming elections. Trump said he planned to spend up to $500m to help Republican candidates in their races. The Ohio gubernatorial race is one of the most closely watched in this year’s midterm elections. Campaigns are entering the final six weeks before the election on November 3. The attempted attack is the latest in a string of political violence cases in the US, which has seen a rise in similar incidents over the past decade. In 2025, Minnesota lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, were (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/6/11/man-pleads-guilty-to-slaying-top-democrat-and-her-husband-in-minnesota) assassinated at their home. The husband of former Democratic House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi was (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/1/27/footage-released-of-hammer-attack-on-nancy-pelosis-husband) assaulted in 2022 . Trump was also the target of two (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/4/26/timeline-trump-assassination-attempts-and-security-incidents) assassination attempts during the 2024 presidential campaign, while an armed man attempted to (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/4/26/world-reacts-to-shooting-at-white-house-correspondents-dinner) breach security at this year’s White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, where the president was in attendance.            aj-logo             aj-logo             aj-logo       Advertisement          About About   Show more  (https://www.aljazeera.com/about-us) About Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/code-of-ethics/) Code of Ethics   (https://www.aljazeera.com/terms-and-conditions/) Terms and Conditions   (https://www.aljazeera.com/eu-eea-regulatory/) EU/EEA Regulatory Notice   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/) Privacy Policy   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/cookie/) Cookie Policy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Cookie Preferences    (https://trust.aljazeera.net/accessibility/) Accessibility Statement   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sitemap) Sitemap   (https://careers.aljazeera.net/) Work for us      Connect Connect   Show more  (https://network.aljazeera.net/en/contact?tid=6) Contact Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/user-accounts-help) User Accounts Help   (https://commercial.aljazeera.net/) Advertise with us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/stay-connected) Stay Connected   (https://www.aljazeera.com/newsletters) Newsletters   (https://sat.aljazeera.net/en) Channel Finder   (https://www.aljazeera.com/schedule/) TV Schedule   (https://www.aljazeera.com/podcasts/) Podcasts   (https://webapps.aljazeera.net/aje/tips/) Submit a Tip   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored) Paid Partner Content      Our Channels Our Channels   Show more  (http://aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Arabic   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Al Jazeera English   (https://www.ajiunit.com/) Al Jazeera Investigative Unit   (https://www.aljazeeramubasher.net/) Al Jazeera Mubasher   (http://doc.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Documentary   (http://balkans.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Balkans   (http://ajplus.net/) AJ+      Our Network Our Network   Show more  (http://studies.aljazeera.net/en/) Al Jazeera Centre for Studies   (http://training.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Media Institute   (http://learning.aljazeera.net/) Learn Arabic   (http://liberties.aljazeera.com/en) Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights   (http://forum.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Forum   (https://hotels.aljazeera.net/en) Al Jazeera Hotel Partners        Follow Al Jazeera English: (https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera) facebook       (https://twitter.com/ajenglish) twitter     (https://www.youtube.com/aljazeeraenglish) youtube     (https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/?hl=en) instagram-colored-outline                          (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml) rss     (https://bsky.app/profile/aljazeera.com) bluesky     (https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish) tiktok-colored-outline                  (Al Jazeera Media Network logo)   © 2026 Al Jazeera Media Network