NY assemblyman slams Cuomo: ‘Absolute power corrupts absolutely’
New York State Assemblyman Doug Smith on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo facing sexual harassment accusations.
New Yorkers do not think that Gov. Andrew Cuomo should resign amid dual scandals concerning sexual harassment accusations and undercounting nursing home deaths, but they don't think he should run for reelection either.
Fifty-nine percent of registered New York voters think the embattled Governor should stay in office, while just 40% say he should resign, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday.
Cuomo's approval rating has dropped precipitously amid the scandals, with just 45% of New Yorkers approving of his performance now, compared to 72% in the early months of the coronavirus pandemic.
While New Yorkers think Cuomo should stay in office, 59% say he should not seek a fourth term in 2022.
Three women have accused Cuomo of inappropriate touching and offensive remarks in recent days, but the Governor has been adamant that he is staying in office.
"I wasn’t elected by politicians, I was elected by the people of the state of New York," he said at a press conference Wednesday. "I’m not going to resign."
Gov. Andrew Cuomo apologized for "pain I've caused" amid sexual harassment allegations but said he is not going to resign Wednesday.
Cuomo said he now understands he "acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable" and that he "truly and deeply" apologizes for it.
More than 30 New York state lawmakers, including Republicans and Democrats, are calling for Cuomo's resignation.
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The sexual harassment allegations come after Cuomo's administration was accused of purposefully undercounting nursing home deaths in the state.
"It seems like the focus and the outcry of the Democrats in New York State have brought on so much reaction of outrage on the sexual harassment, and they have totally ignored what he has done involving the nursing home scandal, his cover-up, his disregard for their attempts to have hearings," Grace Colucci, whose father died last spring after contracting coronavirus in a New York nursing home, previously told Fox News.
The New York Governor earned national praise early in the pandemic for his measured press conferences, but New Yorkers' approval of his response coronavirus has plummeted as well.
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Only 56% of voters approve of his handling of the pandemic now, down from 81% in May of last year.
The Quinnipiac poll was taken on Mar. 2-3.
Fox News' Evie Fordham and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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