Politics

Top Cuomo Aide Departs Admin Amid Calls For Cuomo’s Resignation

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  • A top aide to Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has departed the administration as the lawmaker faces calls for his resignation.
  • Kumiki Gibson’s last day as chief counsel to the governor is Friday, the governor’s office announced. 
  • Gibson, who served in this position since 2019 and has taken a job in the non-profit sector, will be replaced by Cuomo Special Counsel and Senior Advisor Beth Garvey, according to a press release from the governor’s office.

A top aide to Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has departed the administration as the lawmaker faces calls for his resignation.

The administration announced Kumiki Gibson’s departure from her post as chief counsel to the governor Monday.

Gibson, who served in the position since 2019 and has taken a job in the non-profit sector, will be replaced by Cuomo Special Counsel and Senior Advisor Beth Garvey, according to a press release from the governor’s office.

The embattled governor currently faces two separate investigations: an investigation into his workplace behavior by the attorney general’s office, and a federal Department of Justice probe into his role in undercounting nursing home deaths in New York.

“Beth Garvey is a true public servant and a brilliant legal mind who has been an integral member of this administration since she joined it,” Cuomo said in a statement. The governor also commended Gibson “for her hard work, dedication and service to the people of this great state” and wished her “only the best” in her new venture. 

In a statement, Gibson said that she had announced her resignation a month ago.

 “It has been an honor and privilege to work for the Governor and the people of the State of New York,” Gibson said. “I remain deeply impressed with the talent and dedication of my legal team and will forever be grateful for having the opportunity to serve New Yorkers.”

Reports from The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal found that top Cuomo aides Melissa DeRosa, New York Department of Financial Services superintendent Linda Lacewell and former Cuomo advisor Jim Malatras convinced state health officials to alter the number of nursing home deaths to COVID-19 from a July report.

The Daily Caller News Foundation reported May 15 that Cuomo administration stopped reporting nursing home deaths in late April and only reported in the beginning of May the nursing home residents who died from COVID while physically at their facility. The administration omitted the deaths of nursing home patients who died from COVID at a hospital.

Five women have accused the New York Democrat of sexual misconduct. The fifth accuser, former Cuomo aide Ana Liss, came forward with her allegations in a Wall Street Journal story published Saturday evening. Liss accused the governor of touching her lower back, kissing her hand, and inquiring about her relationship status.

Karen Hinton told the Washington Post Saturday that Cuomo hugged her in an embrace that was “very long, too long, too tight, too intimate” in a dimly lit hotel room on a 2000 trip to Los Angeles. He was the head of the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development at the time.

Anna Ruch met the New York Democrat at a September 2019 New York City wedding reception, she told the New York Times. Ruch said the governor put his hand on her bare back, moved close to her, told her she was “aggressive” when she removed his hand, placed his hands on her cheeks and asked her if he could kiss her.  Her friend later told her that he had kissed her cheek, she said.

Charlotte Bennett told the New York Times that the governor asked her about her sex life, asked her whether she practiced monogamy, whether she was interested in older men, and discussed her past sexual assault with her in an uncomfortable manner.

The same week, Lindsey Boylan accused the governor of kissing her without her consent during a one-on-one briefing, making her uncomfortable, and making a number of sexually charged comments to her.

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