The past couple of weeks have been filled with controversy and scandal for New York’s state governor, Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo has recently come under fire for the numerous sexual misconduct claims that have been made against him, as well as for his involvement in obscuring the extent of COVID-19 related nursing home deaths.
Cuomo has now been accused of sexual harassment and misconduct by six women. Five of these women were former employees of his. The claims of sexual harassment began this past December, when one of Cuomo’s former staffers tweeted about how he would often comment on, and even criticize, her looks. Cuomo and his team immediately dismissed these allegations, insisting that there was no truth behind them.
In the time since this initial story came out, more women have come forward with their own stories of Cuomo’s workplace misconduct. A young executive assistant of Cuomo’s told stories of how he used to ask her if she believed that age mattered in a relationship, or if she had ever been with an older man. More recently, a woman accused Cuomo of trying to kiss her at a wedding reception without her consent. More and more former female employees have come forward, revealing anecdotes of inappropriate conduct and toxicity within Governor Cuomo’s workplace. The New York state attorney general, Letitia James, is now involved and will be conducting a thorough investigation into the multiple allegations against Cuomo.
In addition to these troubling accusations, Cuomo has faced backlash for intentionally undercounting nursing home deaths by several thousand in order to create the illusion that the New York government was handling the pandemic better than it truly was. Cuomo has admitted to allowing false numbers to be reported, claiming he did so for fear that the Trump administration would use the real number of nursing home deaths as a political weapon. Cuomo’s motivation for allowing the false data to be released has been called into question. Many reputable news outlets have reported that the data had been altered far earlier than Cuomo had originally acknowledged.
The sexual harassment allegations against the governor, coupled with his involvement in the falsification of New York’s nursing home deaths, have caused state and congressional leaders to call for his resignation. Jamaal Bowman, Mondaire Jones, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are among the many who believe Cuomo should step down from his role as New York State governor. As of right now, Cuomo has refused to step down as governor of New York. He has issued multiple “apologies” where he has denied ever touching anyone inappropriately, and has apologized if his accusers misinterpreted his attentions. Although it is unclear what Cuomo’s political future holds, New Yorkers and the rest of the country are eager to see what will happen with the attorney general’s investigation and the rest of Cuomo’s political career.