Prominent New York State Senator Accused Of Forcibly Kissing Staffer
Switching Sides: Democrats thought they had control of New York?s state Senate after winning a majority of seats. Jeffrey Klein and Simcha Felder had other thoughts in mind. Image by courtesy of jeffrey klein
By Josh Nathan-Kazis January 11, 2018
New York state senator Jeffrey Klein was accused by a former Senate staffer of forcibly kissing her in 2015, the Huffington Post reported Wednesday.
Klein, who leads the breakaway Independent Democratic Conference, represents the Bronx neighborhood of Riverdale in the Senate. Klein denied the allegations.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, among others, has called for an investigation, according to the Huffington Post.
The former staffer, Erica Vladimer, told the Huffington Post that Klein had kissed her outside of a bar where they were gathering with other senators and staffers.
“All of a sudden there was a hand on the back of my head and he shoved his tongue down my throat,” Vladimer told the site. “In my head it lasted forever, I don’t think it lasted even three seconds.”
As the head of the IDC, Klein is a kingmaker in Albany. A pending deal with the mainstream Democrats could soon make him one of the two co-leaders of the State Senate.
Contact Josh Nathan-Kazis at nathankazis@forward.com or on Twitter, @joshnathankazis.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.
If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
