NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo Resigns

By Chilekasi Adele and Teagan Brown

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced he will resign Tuesday, effective in 14 days.

The resignation comes after a bombshell report from Attorney General Letitia James exactly a week ago. The report found the Governor sexually harassed multiple women and retaliated against one for making her claims public. Cuomo denies the allegations, and disagrees with the findings of the report.

“The report said I sexually harassed eleven women, that was the headline people heard and saw and reacted to. The reaction was outrage, it should have been. However, it was also false,” he said in a statement today.

Many local, state, and federal officials called for Cuomo’s resignation. Some of the most notable calls included New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio, NY Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, and President Joe Biden.

“It was an honor to lead… Thank you for the honor of serving you, it’s been the honor of my lifetime. God bless you.” Cuomo said.

Cuomo, 63, has served as Governor of New York State since 2011. He has received lots of positive national attention since the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Many lauded him for his daily briefings and response, but he has also been widely criticized for his handling, particularly a March 2020 order to take in positive COVID-19 patients into nursing homes in order to free up hospital beds.

NY AG Letitia James released a report earlier this year saying that the Cuomo administration did not accurately report the number of people who actually died at nursing homes across the state. The report said the administration undercounted the nursing home death toll by as much as 50 percent.

In two weeks, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul will step into the Governor’s Mansion. Hochul, a Syracuse University graduate, said Tuesday in a Twitter post,

“I agree with Governor Cuomo’s decision to step down. It is the right thing to do and in the best interest of New Yorkers, Hochul said. “As someone who has served at all levels of government and is next in the line of succession, I am prepared to lead as New York State’s 57th Governor.”

The Buffalo native will become the first female governor of New York State.