Scott Stringer, NYC mayoral candidate, accused of sex abuse, unwanted kissing, touching

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A former intern who once worked for New York City mayoral candidate Scott Stringer is accusing the city's comptroller of sexually abusing and harassing her more than a decade ago, during Stringer's tenure as a lawmaker in the New York State Assembly.

The woman, Jean Kim, is calling on Stringer to resign from his office and "immediately" end his campaign for mayor.

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At a news conference on Wednesday, Kim charged that Stringer kissed and groped her without her consent as he "inappropriately and relentlessly pursued a sexual relationship with me."

Jean Kim speaks to reporters during a news conference, Wednesday, April 28, 2021, in New York. Kim, who once worked as an unpaid intern for City Comptroller Scott Stringer, a contender to become New York City's next mayor, accused him Wednesday of groping her without consent. Stringer denied the allegations. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

"He kept saying, 'Why won't you f--- me? Why won't you f--- me?'" Kim told reporters outside Stringer's New York City offices.

Stringer - speaking at a news conference a couple of hours later - strongly denied the allegations.

Kim, who's now a lobbyist, said that "I have tried my best to put this chapter of my life behind me, to forget about it all and move forward with my life, but I'm coming forward now because being forced to see him in my living room TV every day, pretending to be a champion for women's rights just sickens me when I know the truth."

"I have never disclosed this before because I was always fearful of his vindictive nature and that he would retaliate against me and destroy my career in politics," she added.

Kim then stressed that "Scott Stringer should resign and withdraw from the mayoral campaign immediately."

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The accusations against Stringer, one of the leading contenders for the Democratic mayoral nomination, comes with less than two months to go until the city's June 22 mayoral primaries. Recent polls indicate Stringer trailing behind front runners Andrew Yang, a tech entrepreneur and former Democratic presidential contender, and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, a former captain in the New York City Police Department.

Stringer denied the allegations after they were first made in a press release Tuesday night.

"I firmly believe that all survivors of harassment have the right to come forward. I will reserve further comment until this person has had the opportunity to share their story," Stringer said. "For now, let me say without equivocation: these allegations are untrue and do not reflect my interactions with anyone, including any woman or member of my staff."

FILE - In this Thursday March 18, 2021, file photo, Scott Stringer, New York City Comptroller and Democratic mayoral candidate, speaks out against anti-Asian hate crimes during a news conference at the National Action Network in New York. A woman who once worked as an unpaid intern for City Comptroller Stringer, accused him Wednesday, April 28, 2021, of groping her without consent. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Stringer soundly denied all of Kim's allegations, saying that at no point in time did she work for him, but that she was a friend and volunteer, employed in a "publicist" capacity.

Stringer did admit that he was in a relationship with someone else at the same time he was having "consensual" relations with Jean Kim.

Stringer stressed that he has "never used force, made threats, or did any of the things that were alleged" by Kim. He claimsed things were very amicable with Kim until he could not find a place for her in his campaign for NYC comptroller, and that's when their relationship as friends came to an end.

He also made clear that he is not ending his mayoral campaign.

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In the wake of the bombshell allegations, two other Democratic mayoral candidates, Shaun Donovan and Kathryn Garcia, have called on Stringer to drop out of the race.

Fox News' Marta Dhanis contributed to this report.