Patrick Havas charged with assault after lunging at Amy Acton

An armed man rushed Democratic Ohio gubernatorial nominee Amy Acton at the Canfield Fair on Sunday, pushing through a crowd of supporters and injuring several people before her security detail stopped him, according to the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office and Acton's campaign. Acton, a physician, was not hurt.

The suspect, Patrick Havas, 38, of Canfield, was booked into the Mahoning County Jail on two counts of assault and one count of disorderly conduct, the sheriff's office said. He was carrying two handguns and a set of brass knuckles, according to Sheriff Jerry Greene.

Acton remained on-site after the confrontation to attend to one of the injured, according to a photo shared with NBC News by a person at the event. The extent of injuries to the others was not immediately known.

What happened at the Democratic tent

The confrontation occurred around 2:30 p.m. while Acton was speaking to a crowd inside the Mahoning County Democratic Party's tent, sheriff's spokesperson Gerry Ricciutti said. Havas entered with a cellphone set up to record the visit and began forcing his way to the front of the crowd.

Acton's security detail, made up of Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers, moved in on Havas as he pushed toward the front. Two older adults were knocked to the ground during the struggle. Officers with the Canfield Fair Police Department took Havas into custody.

No weapons were ever brandished or even removed from their holsters.

Sheriff Jerry Greene told CBS News that Havas aggressively shoved his way through the crowd while holding a cellphone up and allegedly knocked over two older people on mobility scooters and causing one to fall. Wayne Penny Jr., a Democratic candidate for Ohio's 59th State House District, told the network that hecklers had gathered at the tent before one bull-rushed through the crowd, knocking volunteers down and pushing over an elderly man with Parkinson's who hit his head.

Acton's campaign said in a statement that an armed individual lunged at her, injuring multiple people. Dr. Acton and her husband, Eric, were grateful for the swift and decisive action of law enforcement and praying for the recovery of those injured, said communications director Addie Bullock.

Weapons recovered, none brandished

After his arrest, the Ohio State Highway Patrol said Havas was also found to have a Taser. All of the items are legal to carry in Ohio, Greene said. The Highway Patrol provides protection to Acton because she is a candidate for governor.

The Canfield Fair permits visitors to carry firearms on the fairgrounds under Ohio law, though guns are prohibited inside buildings with posted signage. A 2025 opinion from the Ohio attorney general held that county agricultural societies fall under the state law barring local governments from writing their own firearms rules, leaving open-air booths like the one hosting Acton outside any weapons restriction. The 180th Canfield Fair, Ohio's largest county fair, ran September 2 through 7 and drew about 285,000 visitors last year.

Detectives with the sheriff's office are continuing to investigate, and the Highway Patrol is examining any potential threat assessment, authorities said. The sheriff's office asked anyone with cellphone video or photos of the incident to contact Chief Deputy Jeff Allen at 330-480-5012.

We are grateful for the quick work of the Ohio State Highway Patrol and other law enforcement on the scene at the Canfield Fair today when a man tried to forcefully push himself toward Dr. Acton as she was speaking and injured other attendees at the Mahoning County Democrat booth.

DeWine, a Republican, said he and his wife had spoken with Acton by phone and that she wanted Ohioans to know she was okay. He said violence or the threat of violence at political or public events is always unacceptable and that the case is now in the hands of law enforcement.

Acton's Republican opponent, Vivek Ramaswamy, condemned the confrontation. His campaign said candidates should be able to meet with voters without worrying about threats or violence, calling what happened completely unacceptable. Ramaswamy had also been scheduled to visit the fair Sunday afternoon.

A rise in political violence

The confrontation is one of a string of attacks on public figures in recent years. Federal political committees spent more than $40 million on expenses labeled as security during the 2023-24 campaign cycle, the most recent one for which data is publicly available, according to an April report from the Public Service Alliance, a nonpartisan group focused on protecting public officials.

• The 2017 shooting at a Republican congressional baseball practice in Alexandria, Virginia
• The 2022 hammer assault on the husband of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in California
• Three assassination attempts on Donald Trump, two in 2024 and one in April 2026
• The killings last year of Minnesota House Democratic leader Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and of commentator Charlie Kirk in Utah

The Ohio governor's race is one of the highest-profile contests in the country this year, with the campaigns entering the final eight weeks of campaigning before the November 3 general election. Acton is the Democratic nominee and the state's former public health director.

Ramaswamy, a businessman who ran for president in 2024 and has aligned himself with President Donald Trump, has drawn on national name recognition and tech-industry connections to build a record fundraising total for the race. He has used rallies and advertising to criticize Acton. Polls have indicated a tight contest, with Ramaswamy leading Acton by 2 percentage points in a Fox News poll conducted last month.

From health director to nominee

Acton, 60, is a physician who was recruited by Republican Gov. DeWine in 2019 to lead the Ohio Department of Health, having taught public health at Ohio State University as an assistant professor of practice. Canfield, where Sunday's confrontation unfolded, is a suburb of Youngstown in Mahoning County.

As the coronavirus pandemic began in early 2020, Acton became the face of the state's response, appearing at Gov. DeWine's daily briefings and, for many viewers, a source of reassurance. Her work drew recognition, including the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation's Profile in COVID Courage Award and the Columbus Foundation's Spirit of Columbus Award, but it also made her a target for Statehouse Republicans and Ohioans who opposed the pandemic restrictions.

Sunday was not the first time Acton has faced a security threat tied to her public role. While she served as health director, armed protesters demonstrated outside her suburban Columbus home over the statewide COVID-19 restrictions before she resigned in June 2020.

This kind of violence has no place in Ohio. Dr. Acton will always stand up to the chaos, hate and vitriol that pits us against one another.

The Mahoning County Democratic Party, which hosted Acton on Sunday, said the man was arrested at its tent with multiple weapons after knocking volunteers to the ground. Party chairman Chris Anderson said the party abhors political violence in all forms and called the episode reprehensible. John Boccieri, a Democratic candidate for Ohio's 58th District who witnessed the incident, said it should alarm every Ohioan regardless of political affiliation.

Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson said he was thankful Acton was unharmed and expressed confidence in her Highway Patrol protection detail. Sen. Jon Husted, a Republican who served as lieutenant governor alongside DeWine and Acton, said he and his wife were disturbed by the attempted attack and grateful for the quick response of law enforcement.

Questions that remain

Havas, a Canfield resident whose only prior conviction in the county is a 2008 disorderly conduct case, remained held at the Mahoning County Jail on two counts of assault and one count of disorderly conduct. A motive for the confrontation has not been disclosed. Open questions include what formal charges prosecutors will ultimately file and whether security will change for Acton's remaining events before the November election.