ALBANY, N.Y. (WKBW) — Governor Andrew Cuomo says he will not resign amid sexual harassment allegations.
Instead, the governor is asking New Yorkers to wait for the State Attorney General's report before forming an opinion related to the allegations made by three women.
The Governor addressed the allegations directly on Wednesday during his first public appearance in a week, saying, "I want New Yorkers to hear from me directly on this." He also repeatedly apologized saying he never knew he was making anyone feel uncomfortable.
When asked point blank if he would step aside, specifically in regards to the budget process, Governor Cuomo said he would cooperate with the state AG's investigation and will move forward with the budget process.
The Governor says he has learned an important lesson from all of this and he will be better for the experience.
Over the past week, calls have been growing on both sides of the aisle for the Governor to step aside.
How can New Yorkers trust you @NYGovCuomo to lead our state if you “don’t know” when you’ve been inappropriate with your own staff?
— Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) March 3, 2021
The Governor’s press conference was full of falsehoods and inaccurate information, and New Yorkers deserve better. The Governor repeatedly said he never touched anyone inappropriately. Ms. Ruch’s story makes clear that’s not accurate. The Governor repeatedly said he had no idea he made anyone uncomfortable. My client, Charlotte Bennett, reported his sexually harassing behavior immediately to his Chief of Staff and Chief Counsel. We are confident that they made him aware of her complaint and we fully expect that the Attorney General’s investigation will demonstrate that Cuomo administration officials failed to act on Ms. Bennett’s serious allegations or to ensure that corrective measures were taken, in violation of their legal requirements.
Further, as reports are emerging of other staff resigning from the Governor’s office in the wake of his scandals, the people charged with helping him execute the duties of his office are once again bearing the consequences of his actions. If they know anything or have experienced this themselves, we call on them to come forward and report this misconduct
