As Pressure Increases, Many Ask: How Would a Cuomo Impeachment Work?

By: Don Driggers

With a major scandal involving the alleged altering of nursing home death data, and as of press, 6 women coming out and alleging sexual harassment, Governor Cuomo is in hot water, and with his refusal to step down, impeachment in NY state is an option.

In New York’s history, only one governor, William Sulzer, has been impeached. Sulzer was impeached in 1913, after serving fewer than 10 months in office, for embezzling his own campaign funds for personal use, City and State pointed out.

The only other governor who has come close to being impeached in recent history is former Gov. Elliot Spitzer, who became entangled in a prostitution scandal in 2008. Spitzer resigned after serving 15 months in office, right as state lawmakers began drafting articles of impeachment., City and State reported.

City and State summarized the process in NY state for an impeachment:

The state’s impeachment process is much like that of impeaching a president, beginning with the introduction of articles of impeachment which must then be voted upon by the state Assembly. If impeachment is passed by a majority of Assembly members, then a court impeachment trial may commence with the lieutenant governor, members of the state Senate, and judges from the court of appeals who preside. A conviction requires two-thirds of the Senate to vote for impeachment, similar to the U.S. Senate.

Under Article XIII, Section 5 of the New York Constitution, any public officer is subject to removal for “misconduct or malversation in office,” with the latter term referring to corruption, extortion, and other punishable acts.

The constitution gives the 150-member state Assembly the power to impeach officials by the vote of a simple majority, or 76 lawmakers. The current Assembly is composed of 106 Democrats, 43 Republicans and one independent, NY Post pointed out.

After a successful passage by the assembly, the impeachment trial would be conducted by the 63-member state Senate and the Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court. In the case of the governor’s trial, neither the lieutenant governor nor the Senate majority leader can participate.

The Senate is composed of 43 Democrats and 20 Republicans, and every judge on the Court of Appeals was nominated by Cuomo, The Post pointed out.

The odds of a successful impeachment of the once revered EMMY winning governor are very slim as the Democrat Party holds large majorities in the state Assembly and Senate. “The increased focus by the media on the sexual harassment allegations are rapidly overshadowing the COVID nursing home scandal, and it looks like justice if far from happening to Cuomo”, political analyst Jared Evan told TJV News.