COLUMBUS, Ohio — On Thursday, Gov. Mike DeWine announced that Dr. Joan Duwve would be his choice as the new director of the Ohio Department of Health. Hours later, he tweeted that Duwve had withdrawn her name from consideration for the post. 

In a statement provided to Columbia, South Carolina newspaper The State, Dr. Duwve gave her reasons for turning down the opportunity to return to her native state to take over as health director. 

“In conversations preparing for the transition to the Ohio Department of Health, I was informed that the former director’s family had faced harassment from the public,” she said. “While I have dedicated my life to improving public health, my first commitment is to my family. I am a public figure. My family is off limits. I withdrew my name from consideration