New York state governor accused of sexual harassment announces resignation

Published on : 08/10/2021 – 18:54

New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo, accused of sexual harassment by several women, announced his resignation on Tuesday, August 10, a week after a damning report on the case.

“Given the circumstances, the best way to help you is to withdraw,” said Andrew Cuomo, who also offered a “deep apology” to women who “felt offended” by his actions.

The 63-year-old Democrat told an online news conference that his resignation would be effective in 14 days.

Andrew Cuomo, governor in place since 2011 and re-elected in 2014 and 2018, was implicated for the first time in February, and the testimonies of former employees of his administration or advisers had multiplied since. In March, he had already rejected calls for resignation.

“I apologize deeply”

But the situation had become much more difficult for him since the overwhelming findings of an investigation requested by New York State Attorney General Letitia James, who accused him of having sexually harassed eleven women and broke federal and state laws. In the process, US President Joe Biden called on him to step down.

Among the women featured in the report, an aide lodged a complaint last week, paving the way for legal action against the governor.

“The most serious charges have no credible basis in the report. And there is a difference between allegations of inappropriate behavior and concluding that there is sexual harassment,” said Andrew Cuomo. Tuesday. “But that doesn’t mean that eleven women weren’t offended. They are. And for that, I deeply apologize,” he added.

He said his resignation would take effect in 14 days and paid tribute to Vice-Governor Kathy Hochul, “intelligent and competent”, who will replace him immediately, and become the first female governor of New State. York.

Governor of the fourth most populous state in the country, Andrew Cuomo had become a national star at the height of the coronavirus pandemic in the spring of 2020, thanks to his daily television spots, seen as rational and reassuring in the midst of the crisis, and which had him erected as an anti-Trump figure.

But its record had already been tarnished by a case of underestimation of the number of deaths from Covid-19 in retirement homes, then by accusations of sexual harassment.

With AFP and Reuters