Vivek Ramaswamy, a Republican candidate for governor of Ohio, speaks at a rally Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Campaign finance records for Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy (R) show that the Republican candidate used nearly $12,000 in campaign money for a luxury trip to Puerto Rico last November.

MediasTouch Network reported the spending last Friday. Records show Ramaswamy’s campaign filing an $11,898.25 expenditure for the Dorado Beach Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Dorado, Puerto Rico. The expenditure coincides with a keynote address Ramaswamy was scheduled to give in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Dec. 4, 2025.

That speech was later canceled, but Ramaswamy seemingly still made the trip and stayed in the Ritz-Carlton Reserve. An Instagram post from Dec. 8, 2025 shows Ramaswamy posing on a pickleball court inside the resort with social media influencers Jake and Logan Paul.

 

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“Vivek Ramaswamy’s donor-funded luxury vacation to Puerto Rico while working families are struggling is unsurprising from a billionaire who calls Ohioans lazy, moved his business to Texas, and thinks the ‘perceived’ rising cost of living is only in our imagination,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “Ramaswamy is clearly more interested in fun in the sun with the Paul brothers than bringing costs down for working families.”

Ramaswamy’s campaign did not respond to Heartland Signal’s request to comment.

Ramaswamy, a billionaire whose net worth nearly doubled after announcing his Ohio gubernatorial bid last year, also spent $782,149.66 on private jet travel while campaigning last year.

Ramaswamy will likely face Democratic candidate Dr. Amy Acton in the November gubernatorial general election. While Republicans have dominated statewide elections in Ohio in recent years, Acton has shown strong polling numbers amid Ramaswamy’s controversial candidacy.