New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is facing allegations from seven women who say the governor acted inappropriately toward them.
On Friday, a seventh came forward, accusing Cuomo of unwanted touching while she covered him as a reporter in the state capital of Albany.
Cuomo, 63, has denied all accusations of inappropriate touching, though he has apologized for making people feel uncomfortable. The Democratic governor also remains adamant that he would not resign over the allegations.
MORE THAN 40 DEMOCRATIC STATE LAWMAKERS CALL FOR CUOMO’S RESIGNATION
New York state Attorney General Letitia James is leading an independent investigation into the claims. On Thursday, the New York state Assembly approved an impeachment investigation as the governor faces mounting calls to resign.
So far, Lindsey Boylan, Charlotte Bennett, Anna Ruch, Karen Hinton, and Ana Liss, most of whom worked closely with Cuomo in some capacity, have accused the governor of sexual harassment. The sixth woman, reported to be a member of the Executive Chamber staff, remains unidentified.
The Albany reporter, Jessica Bakeman, said she was 25 years old and starting her journalism career when she was covering the Cuomo administration several years ago.
Here are the details of the allegations brought forth against Cuomo:
Lindsay Boylan
The 36-year-old former Cuomo aide was the first to come forward in December, alleging the governor sexually harassed her for years. In a tweet, Boylan said she never knew what she would be grilled on when she arrived to work, whether it would be her performance or her looks.
“Governor Andrew Cuomo has created a culture within his administration where sexual harassment and bullying is so pervasive that it is not only condoned but expected,” Boylan wrote in an essay posted on Medium last month.
In early March, she called for Cuomo’s resignation, referring to him as a “disgusting monster.”
Boylan worked for the Cuomo administration from March 2015 to October 2018, including as deputy secretary for economic development. She is currently a candidate for Manhattan borough president.
My first experience of workplace sexual harassment was when my mom got her first real office job after graduating from college when I was in high school.
She was so excited to be taken “seriously.” Her bossed isolated her and kissed her. She never had that type of job again.
— Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) December 13, 2020
Charlotte Bennett
The 25-year-old, who worked as a former health policy adviser to the governor, said Cuomo asked her a series of intimate and inappropriate questions about her personal life, alleging it was an attempt to seduce her. Among the questions, Bennett said the governor asked whether she was in a monogamous relationship and if she had sex with older men.
Cuomo apologized, saying he never meant to make anyone feel uncomfortable and denying he ever touched anyone inappropriately.
During an interview with CBS News, Bennett said she would not accept the governor’s apology, calling for him to resign.
“It’s not an apology. It’s not an issue of my feelings. It’s an issue of his actions,” Bennett said. “The fact is that he was sexually harassing me, and he has not apologized for sexually harassing me, and he can’t even use my name.”
Anna Ruch
Ruch, 33, is a former member of the Obama administration and the 2020 Biden campaign. Unlike Cuomo’s other accusers, Ruch never directly worked under Cuomo or for the state of New York.
Ruch alleged that the governor put his hands on her bare back at a wedding reception in New York City in 2019. When she moved his hands, Cuomo allegedly called her “aggressive” and placed his hands on her face and asked to kiss her.
“I was so confused and shocked and embarrassed,” Ruch told the New York Times.
Breaking: A third woman has accused Cuomo of over-the-line behavior. Incredibly, a photographer caught the moment, and this look on her face: https://t.co/NnKCs1Y7WF pic.twitter.com/Smr4hNiKKp
— Jodi Kantor (@jodikantor) March 2, 2021
Karen Hinton
Hinton, a 62-year-old former press staffer, accused Cuomo of grabbing her and summoning her to his hotel room during a work event in 2000, when the governor worked with the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Cuomo’s office denied her allegation, calling the encounter “made up.”
“This did not happen,” Peter Ajemian, Cuomo’s director of communications, told the Washington Post. “Karen Hinton is a known antagonist of the governor’s who is attempting to take advantage of this moment to score cheap points with made up allegations from 21 years ago. All women have the right to come forward and tell their story — however, it’s also the responsibility of the press to consider self-motivation. This is reckless.”
Ana Liss
Liss, 35, is a former policy adviser for Cuomo who alleged the governor asked her if she had a boyfriend, kissed her hand, and called her “sweetheart” between 2013 and 2015.
Sixth accuser
Earlier this week, a sixth woman came forward, accusing the governor of inappropriately touching her late last year during an encounter at the governor’s mansion where she was summoned to do work, according to the Times Union.
The woman, whose identity has not been revealed, is reported to be a member in the Executive Chamber.
The complaint was reported to the governor’s counsel by other chamber employees and was relayed by Cuomo’s office to James’s office.
Jessica Bakeman
Bakeman wrote in a piece for New York Magazine on Friday that the embattled Democratic governor sexually harassed her multiple times since her career began in 2012 as a 25-year-old working for what is now Politico New York.
In an essay, Bakeman said there were numerous times when Cuomo touched her inappropriately, gripping her waist tightly or grabbing her shoulders at events.
Bakeman also alleges Cuomo had sexist tendencies toward her, saying the governor “never let me forget I was a woman.”
“He wanted me to know that he could take my dignity away at any moment with an inappropriate comment or a hand on my waist,” Bakeman said.
Bakeman now works for an NPR affiliate in Florida.
What Cuomo says:
Cuomo has faced calls to resign from Republicans and Democrats. He first assumed office in 2011.
The governor has denied ever inappropriately touching anyone and apologized if he made remarks that made people feel uncomfortable.
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“I want New Yorkers to hear from me directly on this. First, I fully support a woman’s right to come forward,” Cuomo said on March 3. “And I think it should be encouraged in every way. I now understand that I acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable. It was unintentional. And I truly apologize for how — I feel awful about it. And frankly, I am embarrassed by it. And it’s not easy to say, but that’s the truth. But this is what I want you to know, and I want you to know this from me directly.”
The governor reiterated that he will not resign, despite mounting pressure from Democrats, on a conference call with reporters on Friday.
“I’m not going to resign,” he added, saying he was not “elected by the politicians but by the people.”
In recent days, House Democrats from New York’s congressional delegation have increasingly called on the governor to resign, with Reps. Kathleen Rice, Jamaal Bowman, Yvette Clarke, Antonio Delgado, Adriano Espaillat, Brian Higgins, Mondaire Jones, Carolyn Maloney, Grace Meng, Jerry Nadler, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Nydia Velazquez all releasing statements urging him to step down.
