Gov. Andrew Cuomo Faces Impeachment Investigation

The New York State Assembly announced on Thursday that they have opened an impeachment inquiry into Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) after multiple women accused him of sexual harassment.

The three-hour meeting between 150 Assembly members agreed that its judiciary committee will now investigate Cuomo for both sexual harassment allegations against him and his administration’s alleged cover-up of nursing home COVID-19 deaths in New York. The probe will be the first against a New York governor in more than a century.

“The reports of accusations concerning the governor are serious,” the Assembly speaker, Carl E. Heastie (D), said in a statement, explaining that the “impeachment investigation” will include witness interviews and undisclosed subpoenas.

The New York Assembly in their meeting were split as to how Cuomo should best be dealt with. Some members of the Assembly hoped to draft the articles of impeachment against Cuomo as soon as possible, others wanted a judiciary committee to complete their investigation, and others objected the investigation completely, saying New York Attorney General Letitia Jones‘ current investigation into Cuomo would be sufficient.

The Assembly decided to form a special judiciary committee to investigate the governor. If wrongdoing is confirmed, the Assembly with draft articles of impeachment against Cuomo.

Chairman of the New York Assembly Judiciary Committee Charles Lavine said during the meeting that he has “an open mind, and I’m not biased in favor or against the governor. Investigations take on a life of their own, and there’s no way to predict how long it will take. We’ll be working as expeditiously as possible.”

While Heastie has not called for Cuomo to resign, a growing number of New York lawmakers have asked the governor to step down. Most recently, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) called the sexual harassment allegations against Cuomo “disgusting,” in a statement and that “He can no longer serve as governor. It’s as simple as that.”