Lindsey Boylan helped drive Andrew Cuomo from office in 2021 when the former aide came forward as the first woman to accuse the governor of sexual harassment.

A onetime aide to former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has sued him, saying he tried to groom her for a sexual relationship at the start of the pandemic and then later smeared her reputation publicly.

Andrew Cuomo tried to return to the business of governing Monday, one of his sexual harassment accusers met via Zoom for more than four hours with investigators working for the state attorney general’s office. Bennett, 25, is one of a number of women who have accused Cuomo of workplace harassment. That's a process that normally involves intense negotiations and deal-making between Cuomo and the two top leaders in the Legislature. More than 130 state lawmakers have said Cuomo should resign, including Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins. Cuomo, a Democrat, has said he'll “fully cooperate.” His office didn’t immediately comment Monday when asked about Bennett’s interview with investigators.

In this image taken from video from the Office of the NY Governor, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during a news conference, Wednesday, March 3, 2021, in Albany, N.Y. (Office of the NY Governor via AP)ALBANY, N.Y. – New York Gov. “I now understand that I acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable,” Cuomo said. “The facts will come out” in the attorney general's investigation, he said, reiterating his position that he “never knew at the time” that he was making anyone feel uncomfortable. The harassment allegations follow accusations that Cuomo covered up the true COVID-19 death toll on nursing home residents.

New York's attorney general said she's moving forward with an investigation into sexual harassment allegations against Gov. Andrew Cuomo after receiving a letter from his office Monday, March 1, 2021, authorizing her to take charge of the probe. AdAttorney General Letitia James received a letter Monday from Cuomo’s office authorizing her to take charge of the probe after a weekend of wrangling over who should investigate. The harassment allegations come on the heels of accusations he covered up the true death toll of coronavirus on nursing home residents. Cuomo senior adviser Beth Garvey said she would facilitate interviews with witness and requests for documents from Cuomo’s office.

By day's end, Cuomo acquiesced to demands that Attorney General Letitia James control the inquiry. Calls for an investigation mounted after a second former employee of Cuomo's administration went public Saturday with harassment claims. AdHer accusation came days after another former aide, Lindsey Boylan, a former economic development adviser, elaborated on harassment allegations she first made in December. New York’s two U.S. senators, Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, both said an independent investigation was essential. AdJames fueled some of that criticism by issuing a report saying the Cuomo administration had undercounted deaths.

Cuomo subjected her to an unwanted kiss during years of sexual harassment have spurred calls for an investigation and questions about who might meaningfully conduct one. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, Pool, File)NEW YORK – A second former aide said she was sexually harassed by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who responded with a statement Saturday saying he never made advances toward her and never intended to be inappropriate. “I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared,” Bennett told the Times. Bennett told the newspaper she decided not to push for any further action by the administration.