As Governor Cuomo Faces Possibility of Impeachment, How Presidential VS. Gubenatorial Impeachments Differ
On the heels of a stunning national nursing home deaths scandal, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo now seems headed for impeachment for sexual harassment. Faced with twin scandals, both Democrats and Republicans are calling for his impeachment.
In New York, this would be the first impeachment in more than a hundred years.
Once known as the most popular and trusted figure in the US for handling the novel coronavirus pandemic with complete transparency, the governor has fallen heavily in the face of a new scandal that threatens to oust him from office.
Currently, seven women have accused him of sexual misconduct, ranging in allegations from inappropriate comments uninvited kissing, hugging, and groping.
Republicans, progressive Democrats, and others are now calling for the governor to resign or face impeachment proceedings. About twelve Republicans and twenty-seven Democrats have publicly called for Cuomo to resign, and twenty-eight lawmakers, including from both political parties, are proposing impeachment.
With the recent historical second impeachment of former President Donald Trump, the notion of impeaching a governor is also leading the national news cycle.
However, a president’s versus a governor’s impeachment differs in significant ways. With the state legislature in Albany leaning toward impeaching Governor Cuomo, some differences exist between the national versus state legalities of impeachment.
How common are Governor vs. President Impeachments?
As of today, there have been fifteen governors impeached in the United States.
Only three presidents (Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump) were impeached, with no convictions in any instance, though Trump was impeached twice.
How Many Votes are Needed to Conduct an Impeachment Hearing?
For a US president to face an impeachment trial, there must be a simple majority in the House to send the case to the Senate, where it will become a trial.
In New York State, there must be 76 Assembly votes to send the case to an impeachment court. In total, there are 150 assembly members.
Currently, a statement condemning Cuomo and calling for the governor to resign includes sixty-one Assembly members.
How Do Impeachment Investigations for Presidents VS. Governors Differ?
For a US president, an investigation is a lengthy public procedure including numerous legal teams also called managers, along with witnesses and review of long articles of evidence.
The State Attorney General Letitia James is investigating the governor.
Simultaneously, the New York State Assembly announced it is giving its judiciary committee “broad jurisdiction” to investigate sexual misconduct allegations against Cuomo.
Who Votes to Conduct an Impeachment?
In both Federal and state impeachments, the lower legislature begins the impeachment proceedings. For a president, that body is the House of Representatives, whereas, for a state such as New York, the legislative body is the Assembly.
In the US, the originating US House (Senate or House of Representatives) of the charges for impeaching a president is reached by a two-thirds majority of members’ votes.
For a governor to face an impeachment court, state legislators must vote to conduct an impeachment trial by a majority of Assembly members, which is sixty-seven members.
How do Impeachment Trials for Presidents Versus Governors Work?
In a presidential impeachment, all Congress members, including the House of Representative and Senate, conduct a public impeachment trial and then vote. Witnesses are called, evidence is presented and both defense and prosecution attorneys represent each side, just as in any trial.
For a state impeachment of a governor such as Cuomo, a trial occurs before an “Impeachment Court” that is composed of members of the state Senate, aka Assembly, plus judges of the state's Court of Appeals, who would also cast votes.
Currently, Attorney General James is overseeing the inquiry into allegations against Cuomo and is expected to release a statement to the public soon.
