Vivek Ramaswamy Quits Social Media Amid Racial Attacks

Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for Ohio governor, shared in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Monday that he is leaving Instagram and X due to attacks he has faced for his Indian heritage.

Previously, in a New York Times piece from December 17th, he described his social media experience as being filled with derogatory slurs, including comments about “Padgett” and “street bastards,” along with calls for his deportation. Ramaswamy stated, “I am returning to India,” even though he was born in the U.S. and has never resided in another country. In his Journal article, he noted how social media doesn’t accurately reflect his real-life experiences.

He also mentioned being impressed by the warmth he received while interacting directly with voters across all 88 counties in Ohio. He did not hear any racist remarks during his visits, despite encountering a plethora of hateful comments online. “In 2025, I witnessed a shocking array of racial slurs and worse slurs on social media. But that same year, I visited tens of thousands of voters, and I did not hear a single bigoted comment from an Ohio voter,” Ramaswamy expressed.

The New Year’s resolution he’s adopted for 2026 is to stay off social media. “If my current New Year’s resolutions follow the pattern of past years, I might be back on X by March,” he admitted. “But for now, I’m running an experiment, and I’m inviting my fellow Republicans to join me.” He mused that perhaps this could be a unique factor that contributes to their success in the upcoming 2026 elections.

Nick Fuentes, a controversial figure, has also criticized Ramaswamy, asserting his own influence regarding social media quitting on X. A December report from the Network Contagion Research Institute indicated that a significant portion of engagement with Fuentes’ posts originated from overseas accounts. Ramaswamy referenced this report in his editorial.

He remarked on the troubling findings about Fuentes, highlighting the unusual and rapid nature of his online support as concerning. The Ohio Republican Party has thrown its support behind Ramaswamy for the February 2025 gubernatorial election. Originally, he was to collaborate with Elon Musk and work in Trump’s government; however, he chose to pursue the gubernatorial race instead, where he currently holds a slight edge over his Democratic opponent, Amy Acton, according to RealClearPolling averages.