Another woman has come forward to accuse New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment, this time a current aide, Politico reports.
Alyssa McGrath, who told the New York Times in a story published Friday afternoon that Cuomo sexually harassed her, is the first current staffer to publicly accuse Cuomo of sexual misconduct.
McGrath is the fifth current or former staffer to accuse Cuomo of sexual misconduct. Another current Cuomo aide has accused him of groping her, according to the Times Union, but has remained anonymous.
Cuomo is facing mounting pressure to step down from top Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. New York Attorney General Tish James is investigating allegations against Cuomo. New York lawmakers have also launched an impeachment investigation. A majority of New York assembly members have said that Cuomo’s time in office should come to an end — enough to impeach him.
McGrath told the Times that Cuomo would “ogle her body, remark on her looks, and make suggestive comments” to her and another aide. She also said that Cuomo called her and a co-worker “mingle mamas,” called her beautiful in Italian, looked down her shirt and made a comment about a necklace “hanging there,” among other things.
The Times’ story said that McGrath didn’t say Cuomo made “sexual contact.” A lawyer for Cuomo denied wrongdoing to the Times.
“None of this is remarkable, although it may be old-fashioned,” said Rita Glavin, a Cuomo lawyer. “He has made clear that he has never made inappropriate advances or inappropriately touched anyone.”
McGrath said that Cuomo had told the other current aide accusing Cuomo not to tell McGrath about the incident, according to the Times. They “regularly texted and spoke about the governor,” the Times wrote.
The Times said McGrath’s claims are backed by texts, emails and social media postings. McGrath also said she believed Cuomo’s other accusers.
“It makes me really upset to hear him speak about this and completely deny all allegations,” she told the Times.
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