Second ex-aide accuses Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment
A second woman has come forward to accuse New York governor Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment, compounding problems for one of the country’s most well-known Democratic politicians.
Charlotte Bennett, who was an executive assistant and health policy adviser in the Cuomo administration until November, told The New York Times that Cuomo had asked her a series of inappropriate questions about her personal life.
Bennett said he had harassed her last spring, during the height of New York’s fight against the coronavirus pandemic, which Cuomo led, giving him an international reputation for good leadership then.
In response to the latest accusations, Cuomo issued a statement, saying “I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate.”
The 63-year-old governor added that he had requested an independent investigation into her allegations.
“I believe the best way to get to the truth is through a full and thorough outside review,” Cuomo said.
The investigation will be led by former federal judge Barbara Jones.
Bennett, 25, also said she had told Cuomo’s chief of staff, Jill DesRosiers, what happened less than a week after the alleged disturbing interaction with the governor.
She said she was transferred to a new position as a health policy adviser on the opposite side of the Capitol.
The governor’s special counsel, Beth Garvey, acknowledged that Bennett had complained about the matter and that Bennett had been transferred, consequently, to a position she had already been interested in.
The latest accusations came just days after another former aide, Lindsey Boylan, 36, alleged that the governor had made several “inappropriate gestures” toward her while she worked for the state government between 2015 and 2018.
Cuomo’s office has called Boylan’s accusations untrue, but they have, nevertheless, prompted calls for investigations into her claims.
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