New York Times calls on Cuomo to resign following sexual harassment report

Editorial calls report filled with ‘credible accusations that can’t be looked past’

(Getty Images)

The editorial board at The New York Times joined the chorus of voices calling for Gov Andrew Cuomo to resign hours after the state’s attorney general released a report that found Mr Cuomo to have sexually harassed nearly a dozen women.

In a blistering column published on Tuesday after Mr Cuomo said that he would remain in office, the Times’s editorial board accused him of harboring “a self-serving streak” and being “known for his political bullying”, and added that he could not credibly remain the governor of New York.

“What this report lays out, however, are credible accusations that can’t be looked past. As [Attorney General Letitia] James said on Tuesday, Mr. Cuomo’s alleged conduct ‘corrodes the very fabric and character of our state government and shines light on injustice that can be present at the highest levels of government’, wrote the editorial board.

“If Mr. Cuomo cares for the well-being of the state and its citizens as much as he has said he does over the years, he needs to do the right thing and step down”, it continued.

The calls for his resignation have been echoed by every Democrat in the New York congressional delegation, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, as well as numerous state and local leaders.

Mr Cuomo claimed on Tuesday that the report’s findings were far from the truth, and said that he would not resign. He will now almost certainly face impeachment proceedings brought by his own party.

“The facts are much different than what has been portrayed”, said the governor at a news conference.

Following his remarks the governors of several neighboring states called for his resignation in a rare joint statement while President Joe Biden also called for him to step down at a press conference. The mounting pressure continued into Wednesday as state lawmakers looked poised to begin impeachment proceedings.

“I think he should resign,” said Mr Biden, who added: “I’m sure there were some embraces that were totally innocent. But apparently, the attorney general decided there were things that weren’t”.