Obama, in the Midwest, denounces the “cruelty” and indecency of Trump and his allies during the midterm campaign

DETROIT (AP) — Former President Barack Obama lashed out Saturday at what he described as cruelty and indecency from President Donald Trump and his Republican allies, engaging in one of the nation’s ugliest midterm fights as he worked to rally Democratic voters in two Midwestern battlegrounds.

First in Ohio, Obama took aim at Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who doubled down on a campaign ad featuring his Democratic rival’s ex-mother, Dr. Amy Acton. Trump and Vice President JD Vance also defended the ad, even as Ohio Republican leaders, including Gov. Mike DeWine, called for it to be removed.

“In recent days, we’ve seen that there is no line he won’t cross, no level where he won’t sink,” Obama said of Ramaswamy, noting that Acton “spoke movingly about her painful childhood and all she experienced: abuse, neglect and homelessness.”

Later, in Michigan, Obama condemned critics of Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, suggesting they were using his name or faith to tear him down.

“We’ve seen this movie before. I’ve played it,” Obama said in front of a packed Detroit high school gymnasium. “I have a detailed birth certificate to prove it.”

“Abdul is the best Michigan he can be,” he added.

WATCH: Trump defends Ramaswamy attack ad against Acton amid bipartisan criticism

Obama, 65, remains the Democratic Party’s top motivator nearly a decade after leaving the White House. And he’s taking his power star on the road in the final days of the midterm elections, which will help determine the balance of power in American politics on November 3.

Trump voted Saturday in Florida, where he defended the Ramaswamy ad, which became a national hot spot just over a week before Election Day.

“The mother said Amy Acton was a liar and she was no good,” Trump said. “And you know what? I don’t think you can get a better reference on that.”

The Ramaswamy campaign video features Acton’s biological mother, Donna Arthur, calling her a “liar” and insinuating that she has mental health issues.

Acton, Ohio’s health director during the time of COVID-19, has made no secret that he faced homelessness and abuse as a child. Arthur lost custody of his children after their stepfather, Arthur’s husband, was charged with rape involving Acton.

The abuse allegedly occurred from December 1976 to April 1978. Cledith Arthur failed to appear for a court appearance and became a fugitive. Donna Arthur remained married to him until his death in 2004.

Former President Barack Obama joins Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton and former U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) after a rally ahead of the midterm elections in Cleveland, Ohio, October 24, 2026. Photo by Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

Appearing before Obama, Acton spoke as if he were speaking directly to Ramaswamy.

“My opponent chose to intentionally exploit my childhood to save his stumbling campaign, but that won’t work,” she said. “Decency still matters.” She added: “Mr. Ramaswamy, you are not only out of touch with reality, you are independent and a danger to my state. Apparently, there is no level to which you will not stoop.”

Although Ohio has become more reliably Republican, it has been a hotly contested battleground this year. Both Trump and Vance have visited the state in recent weeks to drum up support for Sen. Jon Husted and Ramaswamy. And the controversy surrounding the Ramaswamy ad has raised the already high temperature.

Michigan is also a critical state this midterm season, with high-stakes elections for Senate and governor.

As Obama spoke to both races, he passionately defended El-Sayed, a former public health official who ran against former Rep. Mike Rogers, a Republican.

The former president pushed back against those who call El-Sayed a radical, saying “Abdul shares my values.” He also acknowledged that El-Sayed criticized him after his re-election in 2012 for not keeping all of his progressive campaign promises.

El-Sayed wrote that Obama “wasn’t the right choice – he just wasn’t the wrong one.”

“Some of these people say, well, you know, Abdul didn’t like some of the things you did as president,” Obama said in Detroit, wearing a blue shirt without a tie, his sleeves rolled up. “You know who else disagrees with everything I do? Michelle Obama. Michelle Obama, like five times a day.”

READ MORE: In final Michigan Senate debate, El-Sayed and Rogers question each other’s loyalties

Democrats hoped that Obama’s presence in the city, three-quarters black, could boost support for El-Sayed among black voters. In the primary, her opponent Haley Stevens won Wayne County, which includes Detroit, by about 6 percentage points. Former Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black and South Asian vice president, campaigned for El-Sayed in September.

Cheryl McWilliams, 67, said Obama’s speech “makes you want to vote,” and she hopes to see a strong turnout in the midterms.

“If Detroit doesn’t vote, whoever shows up is going to lose, period,” McWilliams said. “I just hope we can reach the voters who don’t vote. They think it doesn’t matter, and it does.”

Chunnika Hodges, who lives in Detroit and canvassed for El-Sayed on Saturday, said some black voters support Rogers because they don’t think anything has changed after years of voting Democratic. Some also distrust El-Sayed because of his progressive politics, Hodges said.

“We don’t lean conservative, but we’ve seen it within our community,” Hodges said. “There are conservative blacks, conservative Democrats.”

While Obama spoke about the Democratic candidates in Ohio and Michigan, he also spoke at length about Trump.

He accused the Republican president and his family of widespread corruption and denounced his failure to cut costs, pointing out that Trump had instead focused on building a new White House ballroom and helipad on the South Lawn.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but he seems very focused on renovating the house,” Obama joked. “It should be on HGTV.” He continued: “There’s gold everywhere. It makes the White House look like Saddam Hussein opened a cheesecake factory.”

The former Democratic president acknowledged that the nation would have two more years with Trump, until his term ends. But voters aren’t stuck with Trump’s allies, he said.

“We are not stuck with a soulless Congress and Republican governors who deal with lawlessness, recklessness, cruelty and indifference to workers,” Obama said. “After two years of chaos, cruelty, corruption and incompetence… you have the opportunity to say enough is enough.”

Obama will headline a rally in Georgia next week with Sen. Jon Ossoff and gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms. Trump, campaigning in Perry, Ga., Saturday night with his Republican rivals, made several references to Obama’s event in Michigan, insisting that “the place was empty.”

People reported from New York. AP writer Jill Colvin in New York contributed. GaNun is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-reported issues.