The National have always been game for campaigning on behalf of the Democratic Party, especially in their native Ohio. Among other efforts, the band famously lent their Boxer opener "Fake Empire" to Barack Obama's presidential campaign in 2008, and they played a benefit show for Obama's 2012 campaign in Columbus. Now two members of the band are throwing their efforts behind Dr. Amy Acton's campaign for governor and Sherrod Brown's effort to get back in the US Senate.
Lead singer Matt Berninger and multi-instrumentalist/producer Aaron Dessner have signed on for a rally in their Cincinnati hometown. The location of the Fighting For Ohio Rally has not yet been disclosed, but it will be this Wednesday, Oct. 28 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. ET somewhere in Cincy. A ticket signup link is available here.
Acton, who served as Ohio's director of health during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, is running against Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who recently faced fervent bipartisan condemnation for an ad featuring Acton's estranged mother, Donna Arthur.
Acton says she hasn't spoken to Arthur since she was 12, when Acton was removed from her mother's custody after her stepfather was arrested and charged with raping her. Arthur, who defended her husband against the claims, is seen in the ad calling Acton a liar and urging Ohioans not to vote for her. The ad drew strong criticism from both sides of the aisle, including from Ohio's current Republican governor Mike DeWine, who said Ramaswamy should pull it from circulation. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, compared the ad to "hitting pay dirt" and urged Ramaswamy to keep airing it.
Berninger and Dessner aren't the only prominent Ohio natives stumping for Acton. Springfield native John Legend will appear with Acton in Dayton today. Legend, also a longtime supporter of Democrats in Ohio and beyond, is not expected to perform at the Dayton event, according to the Dayton Daily News.