NEW YORK – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the most powerful New Yorker in Congress, joined fellow Empire State Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand on Friday in calling on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to resign over allegations that he subjected several women to sexual harassment.
In a joint statement, the Democratic senators lauded the “brave” women who have accused Cuomo of a range of sexual misconduct, with the most serious allegation being that he forcibly groped a staffer under her blouse at the Executive Mansion in Albany last year.
“Due to the multiple, credible sexual harassment and misconduct allegations, it is clear that Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence of his governing partners and the people of New York. Governor Cuomo should resign,” Schumer and Gillibrand said in the statement.
The resignation demand from Schumer and Gillibrand came hours after 14 of New York’s 19 House Democrats also called on Cuomo to step down.
Reps. Hakeem Jeffries and Tom Suozzi, two of the five New York House Democrats who didn’t call on Cuomo to immediately resign, still said the governor should consider stepping down.
“Under these extraordinary circumstances, the governor must seriously consider whether he can continue to effectively lead the state. No one is above the law,” said Jeffries, the No. 5 Democrat in the House.
Schumer’s pile-on is especially significant in that he is the second most powerful member of the entire Congress, second only to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
A spokesman for Cuomo could not immediately be reached for comment after Schumer’s statement.
Earlier Friday, Cuomo told reporters on a conference call that he has no intention to resign and blasted lawmakers as “reckless and dangerous” for calling on him to quit.
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(Daily News staff writer Denis Slattery contributed to this story.)
