Ohio gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton was not injured after an armed man pushed through a crowd toward her during a campaign stop at the Canfield Fair on Sunday.
Patrick Havas, 38, entered the Mahoning County Democratic Party tent at about 2:30 p.m. while Acton was speaking and used his phone to record the event. The Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office said he began pushing through the crowd as he moved toward her.
Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers assigned to Acton’s security detail confronted Havas, and two people were knocked to the ground during the encounter. Canfield Fair police took him into custody.
Authorities recovered two handguns, a Taser and brass knuckles. Police said none of the weapons was drawn or removed from its holster. Havas was booked into the Mahoning County Jail on two counts of assault and one count of disorderly conduct.
Police Say Havas Pushed Through the Crowd Toward Acton
The Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office said Havas entered the Democratic Party tent while recording Acton’s appearance on his cellphone. He then pushed through people gathered around the candidate.
Acton’s security detail, made up of Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers, confronted him before Canfield Fair police made the arrest. The Associated Press reported that the patrol described Havas as charging toward Acton.
Two attendees were knocked to the ground. Acton was unharmed.
The weapons recovered after the arrest included two handguns, a Taser and brass knuckles. Investigators said the weapons were not brandished or removed from their holsters during the incident.
Acton Continued Campaigning After the Arrest
Acton’s campaign said she and her husband, Eric Acton, were grateful for the quick response from law enforcement and were thinking about the people who were injured.
“This kind of violence has no place in Ohio,” communications director Addie Bullock said in the campaign’s statement.
Acton remained at the fair after Havas was detained and helped one of the people who had been injured, according to reporting from the scene. She later appeared at a union event in Lorain and spoke with voters about what had happened.
“This is why I’m running,” Acton said there, according to The Washington Post. She said she had been speaking about political division shortly before the incident.
DeWine and Ramaswamy Condemned What Happened
Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said he spoke with Acton after the incident and confirmed that she was OK. He thanked the Ohio State Highway Patrol and other officers who responded at the fair.
“Violence or the threat of violence at political or public events is always unacceptable,” DeWine said in a statement released by his office.
Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign also condemned the incident. Communications director Connie Luck said candidates should be able to meet voters without worrying about threats or violence and called what happened “completely unacceptable.”
The Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio State Highway Patrol are continuing to investigate the incident and Havas’ possible motive. Reuters reported that Havas was taken to the Mahoning County Jail after his arrest.