A Timeline of Andrew Cuomo's Rise, Fall and Re-emergence

New York Times

01-03-2025

Andrew M. Cuomo's entry in the race for mayor of New York City is yet another dramatic twist in the former governor's long history in the public eye.
Mr. Cuomo climbed the political ranks in service of his father, the three-term governor of New York, Mario M. Cuomo, working as his campaign manager and adviser early in his career.
After a stint as President Bill Clinton's housing secretary, Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat, ran for governor himself in 2002. He ended his campaign just before the primary, a humiliating result that damaged his image and relationship with Black leaders who had supported H. Carl McCall's bid to become the state's first African American governor.
But Mr. Cuomo mounted a political comeback four years later when he was elected state attorney general. In 2010, he ran again for governor and won in a landslide.
Over the next decade, Mr. Cuomo built a reputation as an aggressive, forceful leader, adopting a heavy-handed approach that alienated many and led to a well-publicized feud with Mayor Bill de Blasio. It also helped him deliver accomplishments like legalizing same-sex marriage and raising the minimum wage.
But during Mr. Cuomo's third term, when he was riding high as a national hero of the coronavirus pandemic, a confluence of scandals swiftly unraveled his administration.
Here are some key events in Mr. Cuomo's tenure as governor, and the aftermath of his resignation:
June 2011: Cuomo signs a law legalizing same-sex marriage in New York.
This marks a major victory for Mr. Cuomo, still in his first six months as governor, after he had corralled support for the legislation in a Republican-led State Senate. New York becomes the largest state at the time to grant legal recognition to same-sex weddings.
October 2013: Cuomo embarks on a series of major infrastructure investments.
Construction begins to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge north of New York City, a key priority for Mr. Cuomo and one of the biggest infrastructure projects in the country. The new bridge fully opens in 2018 and is renamed the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge.
Mr. Cuomo champions other infrastructure projects, including an overhaul of LaGuardia Airport, a new train hall at Pennsylvania Station and the opening of the Second Avenue subway line.
March 2014: Cuomo dismantles an anticorruption commission, triggering a federal investigation.
Mr. Cuomo abruptly shuts down a commission that was formed to investigate corruption in state government, known as the Moreland Commission, after it began looking into groups with political ties to him. Federal prosecutors investigate Mr. Cuomo's role in closing the panel but do not bring charges.
March 2016: Cuomo helps secure a higher state minimum wage.
Mr. Cuomo announces a budget deal that gradually increases the statewide minimum wage to $15 an hour and establishes paid family leave for workers.
March 2020: The coronavirus pandemic sends New York into lockdown.
Mr. Cuomo's national profile soars to new heights with his daily Covid-19 briefings, which are broadcast live nationwide. His smitten fans call themselves 'Cuomosexuals.'
October 2020: Cuomo publishes a memoir about his leadership during the pandemic.
A state ethics board had given approval for Mr. Cuomo to receive a $5.1 million book deal, after he promised to write the book entirely on his own time and without state resources. The book deal would later prompt years of legal battles.
January 2021: Cuomo faces scrutiny for his administration's handling of nursing home deaths.
New York State's attorney general, Letitia James, finds that Mr. Cuomo's administration undercounted coronavirus-related deaths of nursing home patients by the thousands.
Critics accuse his administration of obscuring the death toll to deflect blame for the state policy of sending nursing home residents who had been hospitalized with coronavirus back to nursing homes.
A top aide admits that the state had withheld the data because it feared an inquiry by President Trump's Justice Department. Mr. Cuomo says the lack of transparency was a mistake but denies making decisions for political reasons and insists that state policy adhered to federal guidelines.
Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn begin investigating the administration's handling of data about nursing home deaths, but no charges have been brought.
February 2021: Cuomo begins to face a cascade of sexual harassment allegations.
A former Cuomo aide, Lindsey Boylan, publicly accuses the governor of sexual harassment, including an unsolicited kiss in his Manhattan office. In the ensuing months, other women come forward with claims that Mr. Cuomo engaged in inappropriate behavior.
Mr. Cuomo has apologized for making any of the women feel uncomfortable but vehemently denied ever touching anyone inappropriately. His lawyers have sought to undermine the women's accounts.
March 2021: State legislators begin an impeachment investigation.
The inquiry focuses on Mr. Cuomo's behavior in office, including the sexual harassment claims, the undercounting of nursing home deaths and the circumstances surrounding his book deal.
Aug. 3, 2021: A report on the sexual harassment allegations against Cuomo prompts fresh calls for him to resign.
The state attorney general's office issues a 165-page report concluding that Mr. Cuomo had sexually harassed nearly a dozen women, including current and former government workers, by engaging in unwanted touching and making inappropriate comments.
The report also finds that Mr. Cuomo and his aides illegally retaliated against at least one woman for making her complaints public — and created a toxic work environment rife with fear and intimidation.
Mr. Cuomo's lawyers criticize the investigation as politically motivated.
President Biden, a longtime friend, advises Mr. Cuomo to step down.
Aug. 11, 2021: Cuomo resigns as governor.
In his resignation speech, Mr. Cuomo says he is taking 'full responsibility' for his actions and frames the accusations against him as stemming from generational differences.
'In my mind, I have never crossed the line with anyone,' he says. 'But I didn't realize the extent to which the line has been redrawn.'
November 2021: State legislators release the findings of the impeachment investigation.
After eight months, the investigation concludes that Mr. Cuomo abused his power to produce his memoir, detailing the extent of his staff's involvement in writing and promoting his book. Mr. Cuomo has denied using state resources on the book.
The investigation also finds that Mr. Cuomo was directly involved in revising a report that downplayed the impact of Covid-19 in nursing homes.
A lawyer for Mr. Cuomo says the investigation was one-sided and denied him due process.
March 2022: Cuomo begins to return to public life.
Mr. Cuomo speaks to a Black church in Brooklyn, casting himself as a victim of 'cancel culture.' He makes the same assertion the following year during an appearance on HBO's 'Real Time With Bill Maher' — part of an ongoing effort to repair his reputation and salvage his legacy.
November 2023: One of Cuomo's accusers sues him, alleging he groped her in late 2020.
Brittany Commisso, a former aide to Mr. Cuomo, files the lawsuit after Albany County prosecutors declined to prosecute the case. The prosecutors had said that although Ms. Commisso was a credible witness, it would be too difficult to prove a criminal case.
Mr. Cuomo's lawyer says the claims are 'provably false,' calling the lawsuit a 'transparent attempt at a cash grab.'
Four other district attorney's offices have also investigated the sexual misconduct allegations against Mr. Cuomo and chosen not to pursue criminal charges.
September 2024: Cuomo testifies before the House of Representatives on his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
A Republican-led House subcommittee on the country's pandemic response grills Mr. Cuomo on his administration's efforts to conceal the number of nursing home deaths. Mr. Cuomo says his team was working with unreliable data during a chaotic time — and disputes that his policies contributed to more deaths.
Afterward, the subcommittee refers Mr. Cuomo to the Justice Department for potential prosecution, accusing him of lying to Congress. A spokesman for Mr. Cuomo denies the allegation, calling the subcommittee 'an illegal use of Congress's investigative authority.'
December 2024: Cuomo sues one of his former aides for defamation.
The lawsuit is filed against Charlotte Bennett, who in 2021 accused Mr. Cuomo of inquiring about her sex life and questioning if she liked older men. She had sued Mr. Cuomo in federal court before dropping the case; a lawsuit against the state is still active.
Mr. Cuomo and his allies have been especially forceful in challenging the allegations from Ms. Bennett. One of Mr. Cuomo's sisters secretly directed a network of supporters on how to menace Ms. Bennett and other accusers on social media, The New York Times reported in 2023.