Democratic Congressman Ritchie Torres (NY-15), who represents a large section of The Bronx stretching from the northwest to the South Bronx, announced on Monday, Feb. 24, that he is endorsing former Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo for mayor. The announcement comes despite Cuomo not yet entering the race.

 

Of the former governor’s abilities, Torres told the New York Post on Monday, “The two most important things we need are competence and courage. Andrew Cuomo has the competence to govern the city. He has the courage to stand up to extremist politics — both from the far left and far right.”

 

He added, “We don’t need a Mr. Nice Guy, we need a Mr. Tough Guy. He has my endorsement as soon as he enters the race.” Torres went on to reportedly highlight Cuomo’s economic successes, including the renovation of LaGuardia Airport, the building of the Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station and the upgrading of the Javits Convention Center.

 

He also commended Cuomo for pushing through the law to legalize marriage equality in New York State during his first term, saying, “[Cuomo] succeeded when others have failed.”

 

Rumors of a Cuomo comeback, since his fall from grace in August 2021 amid a workplace sexual harassment scandal, have long been circulating but several judicial proceedings appeared to prolong the scandal, overshadowing his reemergence on the public stage.

 

After the New York State Assembly authorized an impeachment investigation into the workplace sexual harassment allegations in August 2021, Cuomo said he would resign and did so on Aug. 24 that year, paving the way for the ascent of his then-deputy governor, now New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.

 

As reported at the time by The New York Times, though the Assembly later said it would no longer move to impeach Cuomo, members planned to continue, nonetheless, with an investigation into the allegations.

 

New York Attorney General Letitia James later released the findings of an investigatory report that stated that Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women during his time in office, with actions such as unwanted groping, kissing and sexual comments.

 

The former governor repeatedly denied the allegations, characterizing and downplaying his close interactions with both women and men as cultural proclivities, and openly sharing various instances of him kissing people at public events.

 

Those who made the allegations against him viewed his behavior differently and alleged it went beyond that. The former governor appears to have spent much of the intervening years since he left office fighting various legal cases stemming from the scandal.

 

Most recently, according to CBS reporting, in December 2024, Cuomo sued Charlotte Bennett, one of the women who accused him of sexual harassment, for defamation. The outlet also reported that his filing came just days after Bennett withdrew her own sexual harassment lawsuit against Cuomo.

 

CBS also reported that Bennett dropped the lawsuit, citing “invasive discovery requests” made by Cuomo’s legal team that included her medical records from more than a decade prior. The outlet reported that Bennett’s attorney, Debra Katz, reportedly said at the time, “There is a long history of using defamation lawsuits to silence and punish accusers of sexual harassment. It is shameful that Mr. Cuomo has apparently now chosen to go down that path.”

 

As reported by Norwood News, on Jan. 26, 2024, the federal justice department announced it had settled a legal dispute with NY State’s executive chamber (governor’s office) to resolve claims by the justice department that the executive chamber, under Cuomo, had engaged in a pattern or practice of sexual harassment and retaliation, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

 

Justice department officials said a federal investigation found that NYS Executive Chamber under Cuomo subjected female employees to a sexually hostile work environment; secondly, tolerated that environment and failed to correct the problem on an agency-wide basis, and thirdly, retaliated against employees who spoke out about the harassment.

 

According to federal officials, the settlement reiterated certain reforms already carried out by Hochul, along with additional reforms aimed at preventing sexual harassment and retaliation in the NYS executive chamber going forward. Title VII is a federal law that prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin.

 

Title VII also forbids employers from retaliating against current and former employees for complaining about workplace discrimination or otherwise asserting their Title VII rights.

 

In the context of the announcement, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the U.S. Justice department’s civil rights division, said in part, “Executive Chamber employees deserve to work without fear of sexual harassment and harsh reprisal when they oppose that harassment.”

 

She added, “The conduct in the Executive Chamber under the former governor, the state’s most powerful elected official, was especially egregious because of the stark power differential involved and the victims’ lack of avenues to report and redress harassment.”

 

Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York, said in the context of the announcement, “We appreciate [the] Governor [Kathy Hochul]’s stated determination to make sure that sexual harassment does not recur at the highest level of New York State government. We share that goal and enter into this agreement to advance our common goal of creating clear, comprehensive and, most importantly, enduring policies preventing sexual harassment in the Executive Chamber.”

 

Following the federal investigation, Justice department officials said the NYS executive chamber implemented changes to its policies and practices intended to prevent and address the alleged misconduct. The settlement reiterated those efforts and called for additional reforms, including:

• expanding the executive chamber’s Human Resources Department;
• creating new policies and procedures for the external reporting, investigation and resolution of complaints involving high-level executive chamber employees, including the governor;
• developing and implementing robust training and anti-retaliation programs, and
• creating mechanisms to assess the reforms’ effectiveness on a systemic basis.

 

Justice department officials said the enforcement of Title VII and other federal laws against employment discrimination was a top priority. They said the settlement was part of the employment litigation section of the civil rights division of the justice department, a program entitled, “Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Initiative.”

 

They said the program seeks to eradicate sexual harassment in state and local government workplaces, and focuses on litigation, outreach and developing effective remedial measures to address and prevent sex discrimination and harassment.

 

The New York Law Journal reported that Cuomo’s defense counsel wrote that Peace, who signed the settlement agreement, and Hochul, on behalf of the state’s Executive Chamber, were each conflicted in their handling of the investigation, and that Cuomo reportedly asked former U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to look into the alleged conflict. Norwood News has attempted to reach Cuomo’s counsel for an update on the status of the request. We will share any updates we receive.

 

Meanwhile, on Jan. 4, 2022, former Albany County District Attorney David Soares dropped a New York State criminal complaint against Cuomo stemming from the sexual harassment allegations and also announced that Cuomo would not face any other charges related to other groping allegations, citing lack of evidence. Three days later, a judge dropped the State criminal charge against Cuomo. The New York Journal also reported that Cuomo’s attorneys noted that five district attorneys refused to bring cases forward on behalf of Bennett and other accusers.

 

A year after stepping down, Cuomo, who reportedly exchanged some flirty text exchanges in 2020 with comedian Chelsea Handler, told Bronxites during a public gathering amid broader calls for him to run for office again, “One of the things I’ve learned is that the people in The Bronx respect straight talk and unvarnished truth, and that’s what I want to offer you today.”

 

He then continued with an unfortunate and possibly inadvertent choice of words, saying, “I don’t speak to you as a politician, so I can tell you the truth. I speak to you as a concerned New Yorker.” He added, “The truth is we are in a pivotal and dangerous time in this country and in this State.”

 

*David Greene contributed to this story.