A third woman on Monday accused New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment, and photos of the moment have gone viral.
The moment: Anna Ruch, now 33, met Cuomo for the first time when he was working the room at a New York City wedding reception in 2019, The New York Times reported.
- Cuomo put his hand on Ruch’s bare lower back, and she “promptly removed his hand with my hand, which I would have thought was a clear enough indicator that I was not wanting him to touch me,” she told the Times.
- According to the report, Cuomo then called her “aggressive,” and, placing his hands on her cheeks, asked loud enough for a friend standing nearby to hear: “Can I kiss you?”
- Ruch said she felt embarrassed and pulled away as Cuomo leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.
One of the photos Ruch’s friend took of the exchange has circulated widely online and appeared on the cover of Tuesday’s New York Post with the headline “Handsy Andy.”
Four scandals: Ruch is the third woman to accuse Cuomo of sexual harassment in recent days: two former aides have said the governor’s behavior made them feel uncomfortable in the workplace.
- After Ruch’s story was published on Monday, a handful of Democratic lawmakers called on Cuomo to resign, with some also citing his alleged coverup of COVID-19 deaths in New York’s nursing homes.
- Cuomo — who was initially feted for his response to the pandemic — has denied withholding information about the nursing home deaths, saying his staff was simply overwhelmed.
A spokesman for the governor did not directly address Ruch’s story on Monday, but instead referred the Times to a general statement that Cuomo released the previous night in which he acknowledged some of his words “have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation.”
- “To the extent anyone felt that way, I am truly sorry about that,” the statement said.
