NEW YORK, NY – Late Sunday evening, news broke that Governor Cuomo’s top lawyer and close aide, Alphonso David, knew that a state employee had been fired in retaliation for coming forward about sexual harassment. David was notified of the retaliation against the employee in early December, but no action was taken against the sexual harasser for three months, even after the Inspector General recommended that accused sexual harasser be fired. The Governor only took action after reporters exposed the retaliation and other cases of harassment by the same man.

Cynthia Nixon released the following statement on the report.

“Last week, I joined women harassed and intimidated by top Cuomo officials and state legislators to call for hearings. At the time, we were responding to reports thatJames Kiyonaga is still on the state payroll, but even just since that press conference four days ago two additional horrific abuses have come to light. First, the former President of New York’s NOW chapter bravely came forward to talk about how the Governor forced her from her position after she declined to endorse him over Zephyr Teachout in 2014. Secondly, we now know that the uppermost levels of the Cuomo administration were aware of a systemic sexual harasser for months, and did nothing. This begs the question, if reporters hadn’t discovered the retaliation, would Governor Cuomo have ever done anything about it? New Yorkers deserve better than a governor who ignores the survivors and, instead, chooses to shield and even promote those who have been accused. Cuomo has allowed a culture of harassment, silence, and retaliation to permeate in Albany and across the state.”

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