Cuomo pictured in poolside crisis meeting as majority of New Yorkers demand he go

More than half of registered voters – 59 per cent – think Cuomo should be impeached

Scandal-ridden Democratic New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has been photographed lounging poolside with a female staffer at his Albany mansion funded by New York taxpayers.

The New York Post captured a series of images of Mr Cuomo with his feet up in a chair next to the mansion’s pool, appearing to work with a woman sitting on the ground with a laptop as calls for his resignation swarm around him.

The New York Attorney General, Democrat Letitia James, announced on Tuesday that an investigation had found that Mr Cuomo had sexually harassed 11 women and that he had created a toxic workplace.

Prosecutors have said that they have launched separate criminal investigations against Mr Cuomo following the revelations.

The New York State Assembly is moving towards impeaching the governor, with the chair of the state legislature’s judiciary committee, Charles Lavine, saying in a statement on Thursday that the probe was “nearing completion” and that the Assembly will shortly consider “potential articles of impeachment” against Mr Cuomo.

Two former aides to Mr Cuomo confirmed to The New York Post that the woman sitting on the ground close to Mr Cuomo was his secretary, Stephanie Benton.

In a poll released on Wednesday, 63 per cent of registered voters in the state said they think the governor should resign. The Marist University poll showed that only 29 per cent of voters think that Mr Cuomo should stay in office for the rest of his term.

The support for his resignation goes across the aisle with 77 per cent of Republicans and 52 per cent of Democrats thinking Mr Cuomo should leave the job.

More than half of registered voters, 59 per cent, think Mr Cuomo should be impeached, with 48 per cent of Democrats and 80 per cent of Republicans supporting this measure.

The poll was conducted on Tuesday night after the release of the report of an independent inquiry into the sexual harassment allegations against Mr Cuomo. The poll surveyed 542 voters and has a margin of error of 5.5 per cent.

Former President Donald Trump went after Mr Cuomo at a New York state Republican Party fundraiser on Thursday night, alluding to his likely impeachment and saying that the Republicans could take control of the governor’s mansion.

“Cuomo’s got real problems,” Mr Trump said at the fundraiser at the Trump National Golf Course in Briarcliff.

Mr Trump mentioned state Senate Republican Minority Leader Robert Ortt, who would be a part of the impeachment trial of Mr Cuomo if the State Assembly votes to impeach him.

“It’s going to be a hot couple of weeks in Albany,” Mr Trump said according to The New York Post.

Attendees applauded the idea of ousting Mr Cuomo. “Senator Ortt is going to have a great time,” Mr Trump added. “Cuomo has found himself in an interesting situation.”

Mr Trump has been accused of sexual harassment by multiple women and was also impeached twice by the US House of Representatives on unrelated issues. He was acquitted both times by the US Senate.

The former president said Mr Cuomo had been “horrible on Covid” and that the governor hadn’t put the USS Comfort, the Navy hospital ship sent to New York City during the peak of the pandemic, to proper use.

Mr Trump encouraged the guests and other Americans to get vaccinated “because I don’t want to see anything bad happen to my people”.

The fundraiser was attended by 500 guests and pulled in $1m for the state Republican Committee, The New York Post reported.

Mr Trump said Mr Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio have “destroyed New York” and that “we’re going to have a Republican governor”.

Calling former Mayor Rudy Giuliani to the podium, they discussed crime and that Mr Cuomo and the Democratic state legislature have raised taxes on the wealthy this year.

When asked if he was running for the White House in 2024, Mr Trump said: “I’ll make an announcement very soon. I’ll let you guys know”.

New York Republican US Rep Elise Stefanik also spoke at the fundraiser and slammed the governor on Twitter, calling him a “criminal sexual predator”.