Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Heather Hill publicly asked Gov. Mike DeWine on Tuesday to provide her with a state-funded security detail, escalating a four-day feud with her former running mate Stuart Moats into a direct request for taxpayer resources.

In a lengthy Facebook post to her campaign page Tuesday, Hill directly addressed the governor and state Public Safety Director Andy Wilson.

“Hey Gov. DeWine and Andy Wilson, are you ready to offer me the same security as my opponent, YET!!!” Hill wrote.

Hill did not identify which opponent she was referencing, or specify what security arrangement she believes another candidate has received. DeWine’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening.

The Ohio Department of Public Safety oversees the Ohio State Highway Patrol, which provides security details for the governor, lieutenant governor, and other protected officials. Wilson, a former Clark County prosecutor, was appointed to lead the department by DeWine in December 2022.

A longshot candidate with an unusual ask

Hill, 49, is a Morgan County businesswoman, former Morgan Local School District board president, and one of three Republicans on the May 5 primary ballot for governor. She faces biotech entrepreneur and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, the race’s endorsed front-runner, and Tiffin native Casey Putsch.

Hill has no previous statewide elected experience and has campaigned on a platform of abolishing Ohio’s property tax, parents’ rights in education, and restricting tax breaks for data centers. Her own campaign team told 21 News in Youngstown earlier this month that they are “likely one of the least-funded gubernatorial campaigns” in the race.

State-provided security details are typically reserved for sitting officeholders and, in limited circumstances, candidates facing credible threats. There is no public record of any Ohio candidate receiving a state-funded security detail in the 2026 primary cycle.

The post

Hill’s security request came at the end of a long Facebook post making a series of serious new allegations against Moats — including claims of a pattern of abuse and a criminal history dating to his teenage years, and military disciplinary actions during his U.S. Air Force service.

TiffinOhio.net has not independently verified any of the allegations in Hill’s post. Moats, a retired U.S. Air Force major who served three deployments to the Middle East, has not publicly addressed the Tuesday claims. Readers can view Hill’s full post on her campaign Facebook page.

Attempts to reach Moats for comment were unsuccessful.

Hill also said in the post that any news outlet or social media user who has spoken against her “will hear from my attorney.”

Four days, four public escalations

The Hill-Moats split has escalated publicly every day since it began.

On Saturday evening, Hill announced she was dropping Moats as her lieutenant governor running mate over “irreconcilable differences,” posting allegations of inappropriate touching and text-message screenshots including one dispute over a $180,000-a-year compensation arrangement. Moats responded the same evening calling her claims “complete lies” and calling Hill “a terrible person.”

On Sunday, Moats posted a significantly more personal YouTube video calling Hill a “deranged lunatic narcissist,” attacking her appearance in graphic sexual terms, and using a derogatory slur against her husband.

By Tuesday, Hill’s response had shifted to the security request and the broader abuse allegations.

Ballot still shows the original ticket

Hill has said she intends to remain in the race and is working with the Ohio Secretary of State’s office on replacing Moats. Whether a replacement is legally possible this close to Election Day, and what would happen to votes already cast for the Hill-Moats ticket, remains unclear.

Ohio’s early in-person voting began April 7. All absentee and early ballots cast so far in the Republican gubernatorial primary list Hill and Moats as a joint ticket. Election Day is Tuesday, May 5.

Former state health director Dr. Amy Acton is running unopposed in the Democratic primary.