Billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy’s Campaign Racked Up Over Half a Million in Credit Card Bills But Refused to Say What It’s For

Billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy's Campaign Racked Up Over Half a Million in Credit Card Bills But Refused to Say What It's For

June 24, 2026

OCJ: Ramaswamy's campaign shows "troubling" lack of transparency as questions go unanswered for eight weeks

Columbus, Ohio- New reporting from the Ohio Capital Journal reveals how billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign has racked up over half a million dollars in credit card bills, but refuses to say what the expenses were for. Ohio campaign finance law requires campaigns to disclose each individual transaction, but Ramaswamy's campaign is only disclosing its single credit card bill even after weeks of questions.

"Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign owes Ohioans answers about the concerning pattern of spending on his finance reports, from his unreported private jet to his refusal to explain his credit card use," said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. "His campaign had multiple chances to come clean about his spending, but failed at every turn. What kind of scam is Ramaswamy hiding this time?"

READ: Ohio GOP candidate for governor has put $500,000 on the campaign credit card

• Ohio Republican Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign for governor has racked up more than half a million dollars in credit card bills without disclosing what the campaign is purchasing.

• The campaign's credit card spending has jumped dramatically in recent months. Just since April, Ramaswamy's campaign has put $280,892 on an American Express card.

• Ohio campaign finance reports require campaigns to disclose each individual transaction - not just how much they spent but who they paid and what they purchased with the money. Ramaswamy's campaign is only reporting its monthly credit card bill.

• Even if every penny spent was a legitimate campaign expenditure - which it may well have been - reporting transactions under a single credit card reimbursement obscures how the campaign is spending money. It also leaves room for doubt about whether those transactions are legitimate.

• Although many campaigns use credit cards, Ramaswamy is an outlier in terms of dollar amount and reporting.

• Ramaswamy has experience reporting itemized credit card transactions. During his 2024 presidential run, Ramaswamy's campaign finance reports included each individual expenditure separately. In October 2023, for instance, he spent $57,411 on food, lodging and event rentals throughout New Hampshire. He even paid $1,250 to get the Piscataqua Rangers Junior Fife and Drum Corps for a campaign event.

• But in Ohio, Ramaswamy's campaign has reported only a monthly lump sum reimbursement - effectively building a wall around those transactions. Getting any information about the campaign's credit card use requires filing public records requests. That takes time, but the campaign calendar isn't waiting.

• The Ohio Capital Journal's request for documents related to the Ramaswamy campaign's pre-primary report has gone unanswered for eight weeks: enough time for the campaign to hit another campaign finance reporting deadline, with yet more $90,000-plus monthly credit card reimbursements.

###