Gov. Andrew Cuomo Resigns After Sexual Harassment Accusations

LONG ISLAND, NY — After a firestorm of controversy over accusations of sexual harassment, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced his resignation Tuesday.

He will leave office in 14 days, he said.

As a New Yorker born and bred, Cuomo said he is a fighter. "My instinct is to fight through this controversy because I truly believe it was politically motivated ... If I could communicate the facts through the frenzy, New Yorkers would understand."

But when he took his oath, Cuomo said he became a fighter for the people. "It is your best interests I must serve. This situation by its current trajectory will generate months of legal controversy ... It will consume government.

"Given the circumstances, the best way I can help now is to step aside ... Doing the right thing is doing the right thing for you."

The resignation came amidst cries for his impeachment or resignation, with even President Joe Biden calling for the beleaguered governor to step down.

He said litigation will cost time and millions of dollars that should be spent managing the coronavirus crisis and tackling other critical issues, including fighting gun violence.

"This is one of the most challenging times for government in a generation," Cuomo said. "Government really needs to function today, government needs to perform. It is a matter of life and death, government operations, and wasting energy on distractions is the last thing state government should be doing. I cannot be the cause of that."

Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul will replace Cuomo. She is "smart and competent," he said.

"This transition must be seamless," he said, with concerns about the delta variant escalating.

Cuomo thanked his team and recounted the years of accomplishments.

He also spoke of his three daughters, his "jewels."

"I would never intentionally disrespect a woman or treat a woman differently than I would want them treated and that's the God's honest truth," he said. "Your dad made mistakes, he apologized, and he learned from his mistakes. That's what life is all about."

Cuomo also reflected on New Yorkers' strength throughout the pandemic, even as "trailers carried the bodies of our fallen brothers." He said New York led the way. "No one thought we could do it but you did, you led the nation."

To the public, he said: "Thank you for the honor of serving you — the honor of my lifetime."

Cuomo's announcement was preceded by a briefing led by his attorney, outside counsel Rita Glavin, who went through Attorney General Letitia James' report, which concluded that Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women.

Cuomo, a Democrat, has been under scrutiny during an investigation by James that spanned almost five months. Two outside attorneys spoke to 179 people who said that employees, including current and former members of the executive chamber, state troopers and additional state employees, reported a "hostile work environment" that was "rife with fear and intimidation."

Glavin maintained that the governor was "given no process."

Before his resignation Tuesday, Cuomo said there was a "bias and a lack of fairness" in the report. The most serious allegations against him had "no serious credible basis," he said. "That is not to say there are 11 women who I truly offended and for that I deeply, deeply apologize."

While he thought putting an arm around a woman in a photo was "friendly," others disagreed, kissing a woman on the cheek was seen as "too aggressive," he said. He said he told a doctor on television who was giving him a nasal swab, "'You make that gown look good.'"

"I was joking. But I take full responsibility for my actions ... I have been too familiar with people. My sense of humor can be insensitive and off-putting."

He said that while he believes he never crossed the line with anyone, he did not respect lines redrawn by cultural and generational shifts.

Addressing charges by a New York State Police trooper who said he touched her stomach, Cuomo said he did not recall doing it, but he often greeted troopers, mostly men, with a "grip of the arm, a pat on the face, a touch on the stomach, a slap on the back. It is my way of saying, 'I see you, I appreciate you, and I thank you.'"

Independent investigators led by Joon H. Kim and Anne L. Clark released James' report, stating that Cuomo harassed multiple women by engaging in unwanted groping, kissing and hugging, and making inappropriate comments.

The sexual harassment charges followed controversy over Cuomo's role in New York's nursing home deaths during the pandemic.

The news followed the resignation of secretary to the governor Melissa De Rosa, as well as an interview by Brittany Commisso, Cuomo's former assistant who said the governor groped her.

For months, Cuomo had maintained that he "never touched anyone appropriately." He apologized to those he said he might have made uncomfortable. He has said he greets women and men, young and old, the same way, with kisses and hugs.

"It was my father's way of greeting," he has said. "You want people to feel comfortable, to reach out to them."

He said, in a past briefing, if people were offended and "felt pain from it, then it was wrong and I apologize."