A sixth woman came forward Tuesday with an accusation of sexual harassment against Governor Cuomo. Her story was made public amid calls from both Democrats and Republicans for the governor to either resign or risk impeachment.
The woman works as a member of the governor’s office, and she alleges that Cuomo touched her inappropriately during an interaction at the governor’s mansion last year, according to the Albany Times Union, which said it is withholding her identity because she could not be reached for comment.
The governor’s office reportedly learned of the claim on Monday and forwarded the information to the office of Attorney General Letitia James, which announced Monday that her investigation into the harassment claims would be led by Joon H. Kim, the former Acting U.S Attorney for the Southern District of New York and Anne L. Clark, an employment-discrimination attorney.
Cuomo had already been facing calls for impeachment from Republicans in the state legislature who were critical of how the state handled the COVID-19 nursing-home crisis, specifically Cuomo’s administration’s apparent cover-up of the deaths of nursing-home residents. But now even Democratic voices are calling for the governor to step down over these harassment claims.
New York State Senate majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins called on Sunday for Cuomo to resign “for the good of the state,” following new accusations of misconduct over the weekend. At least 20 Democratic lawmakers have also called on Cuomo to go.
Even as accusations have mounted, Cuomo said he has no intentions of resigning. During a press conference last Wednesday, his first public comments on the claims against him, the governor said, “I’m not going to resign. I work for the people of the State of New York. They elected me, and I’m gonna serve the people of the State of New York.” Just a few days later, on Sunday, Cuomo’s tone turned more defiant, saying “I’m not going to resign because of allegations. The premise of resigning because of allegations is actually anti-democratic.”
