New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called for Gov. Andrew Cuomo to step down on Thursday amid a flurry of sexual harassment allegations against the governor that have drawn bipartisan condemnation.
“It’s deeply troubling,” de Blasio said during a press briefing. “The specific allegation that the governor called an employee of his, someone who he had power over, called them to a private place and then sexually assaulted her is absolutely unacceptable to me.”
“It is disgusting to me, and he can no longer serve as governor,” he continued.
The mayor was joined by roughly 60 of his Democratic colleagues in calling for the embattled governor to abdicate his post.
“In light of allegations concerning the governor over the last several weeks, I will be meeting with members in conference today on potential paths forward,” New York Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said.
On Wednesday, a sixth woman, a member of the Executive Chamber staff, said she and Cuomo were alone on the second floor of the governor’s private residence when he stuck his hand under her blouse and fondled her, according to a report from the Albany Times Union. The female staffer, who was not identified by name, pointed to other alleged incidents in which the governor exhibited similar behavior.
Cuomo denied the recent allegations but called the claims “gut-wrenching.”
“As I said yesterday, I have never done anything like this,” Cuomo said. “The details of this report are gut-wrenching. I am not going to speak to the specifics of this or any other allegation given the ongoing review, but I am confident in the result of the attorney general’s report.”
CUOMO DENIES NEW ALLEGATIONS AGAINST HIM BUT CALLS CLAIMS ‘GUT-WRENCHING’
Wednesday’s accusations were preceded by at least five other women, many of whom were former aides to Cuomo, coming forward to report similar alleged incidents.
On Saturday, two women, Karen Hinton, a former press staffer, and policy adviser Ana Liss came forward. Hinton said the governor summoned her to his hotel room and grabbed her during a work event in 2000 when the governor was working with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. Liss claimed that Cuomo asked her if she had a boyfriend, kissed her hand, and called her “sweetheart” between 2013 and 2015.
The embattled governor refused to resign following the Saturday accusations.
“That’s democracy. There is no way I resign,” he said during a teleconference. Cuomo added that he awaits “due process” to make a determination about his alleged offenses.
“People are free to make allegations, but then you also have a process, due process, where people get the facts and they make a determination,” Cuomo said. “I was the attorney general of New York for four years. I got all sorts of allegations against politicians.”
The week prior, Lindsey Boylan, 36, a former aide to Cuomo, accused him of trying to kiss her and asking if she wanted to play strip poker during a 2017 flight. Charlotte Bennett, 25, who served as an executive assistant and health policy adviser in Cuomo’s administration, claimed that Cuomo asked her sexually explicit questions during the summer of 2020 in his Albany headquarters.
Former journalist Anna Ruch, 33, also came forward and said the governor acted inappropriately toward her. A photo emerged of the Democrat holding her face at a wedding in 2019, which she said was a moment before he asked to kiss her.
The investigation has been handed to New York Attorney General Letitia James, who on Monday made two appointments to helm the inquiry.
“We are committed to an independent and thorough investigation of the facts,” James said in a statement obtained by the Washington Examiner. “Joon H. Kim and Anne L. Clark are independent, legal experts who have decades of experience conducting investigations and fighting to uphold the rule of law. There is no question that they both have the knowledge and background necessary to lead this investigation and provide New Yorkers with the answers they deserve.”
“This team is charged with conducting a thorough and independent investigation of, and the circumstances surrounding, allegations of sexual harassment against Governor Cuomo, including his administration’s handling of such matters,” she continued.
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Cuomo’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
