NY legislators urge Cuomo to quit amid groping report
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s grip on power appeared increasingly threatened Thursday as a majority of state legislators called for his resignation and police in the state capital said they stood ready to investigate a groping allegation.
The Times Union of Albany reported Wednesday that an unidentified aide had claimed Cuomo reached under her shirt and fondled her after summoning her to his official residence late last year. Cuomo said he never touched anyone inappropriately.
A lawyer for the governor said Thursday that she reported the allegation to police after the woman involved declined to do so herself.
Beth Garvey, the governor’s acting counsel, said in a statement that as a matter of state policy, the woman who made the allegations was told she should contact her local police department.
“In this case the person is represented by counsel and when counsel confirmed the client did not want to make a report, the state notified the police department and gave them the attorney’s information,” Garvey said.
She said the state was obligated to do so under state law.
An Albany Police Department spokesperson, Steve Smith, didn’t immediately return a message from The Associated Press seeking comment, but he told The New York Times that police had reached out to a representative for the woman and offered their services.
The possible involvement of police comes as more lawmakers called on him to resign over alleged misconduct with women.
At least 121 members of the state Assembly and Senate have said publicly they believe
Cuomo can no longer govern and should quit office now, according to a tally by the AP. The count includes 65 Democrats and 56 Republicans.
Speaker Carl Heastie, the top Democrat in the state Assembly, said he was caucusing with members Thursday to discuss “potential paths forward” in light of mounting allegations.
In New York, the Assembly is the legislative house that could move to impeach Cuomo, who has faced multiple allegations that he made the workplace an uncomfortable place for young women with sexually suggestive remarks and behavior, including unwanted touching and a kiss.
A group of 59 Democratic state legislators, including 19 senators and 40 Assembly members, said in a letter Thursday that it was time for Cuomo to go.
“In light of the Governor’s admission of inappropriate behavior and the findings of altered data on nursing home COVID-19 deaths he has lost the confidence of the public and the state legislature, rendering him ineffective in this time of most urgent need,” the letter said. “It is time for Governor Cuomo to resign.”
Cuomo has repeatedly said
he won’t resign and urged the public to await the outcome of an investigation of his conduct by state Attorney General Letitia James. Cuomo’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
While Cuomo has denied inappropriately touching anyone, he has apologized for comments he made to female staffers. He has said he was engaging in what he thought was playful banter and didn’t realize it was making people uncomfortable.
In the newest allegation against Cuomo, the Times Union of Albany reported that the governor had summoned the aide to his Albany mansion, saying he needed help with his cellphone. After she arrived, Cuomo closed the door, reached under her shirt and fondled her, the newspaper reported.
The newspaper’s reporting was based on an unidentified source with knowledge of the accusation, who said she first told the story to someone on Cuomo’s staff in recent days. The newspaper hadn’t spoken to the woman.
“I have never done anything like this,” Cuomo said through a spokesperson Wednesday evening.