ALBANY — Addressing the public in person for the first time in more than a week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo apologized to the women who have alleged he sexually harassed them, saying he "never touched anyone inappropriately."

He said he was "embarrassed" by the allegations, but asked that New Yorkers wait for the state attorney general’s investigation before reaching conclusions, adding that he's not resigning. 

It was his first press conference since three women, two of them former aides, accused him of unwanted advances. 

Cuomo said that he would be "fully cooperating" with the pending investigation into the allegations by state Attorney General Letitia James. 

"I fully support a woman's right to come forward," said the governor. "I now understand that I acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable. It was unintentional, and I truly and deeply apologize for it. I feel awful about it, and frankly, I am embarrassed by it. And that is not easy to say, but that is the truth."

Cuomo went on to encourage New Yorkers to wait for the facts uncovered by the attorney general's review before formulating any opinion of him, and strongly upheld that, while he did not know at the time that he was making people feel uncomfortable, that he never touched anyone inappropriately.

In answering a question on whether he would resign his position in the wake of the allegations and the several calls from state lawmakers for him to step down, Cuomo said, "I’m not going to resign. I work for the people of the state of New York. They elected me."

"I’m going to do the job the people of the state elected me to do," he added.

After the press conference ended, the attorney for one of Cuomo's accusers, Charlotte Bennett, issued a statement calling it "full of falsehoods and inaccurate information."

In response to Cuomo's claim that he never touched anyone inappropriately, the statement says that the story of Anna Ruch — who accused the governor in a New York Times article of asking to kiss her at a wedding, and who the governor is seen placing his hands on her face in a photo — "makes clear that’s not accurate."

The statement also challenges his assertion that he was unaware he made anyone uncomfortable, saying that Bennett immediately reported his behavior to the governor's chief of staff and chief counsel.

"We are confident that they made him aware of her complaint and we fully expect that the Attorney General’s investigation will demonstrate that Cuomo administration officials failed to act on Ms. Bennett’s serious allegations or to ensure that corrective measures were taken, in violation of their legal requirements," the statement reads.

The wedding Ruch attended was for Gareth Rhodes, who worked for the governor. Rhodes announced Wednesday that he is transferring back to a different job in state government, after his wife Alexa Kissinger posted on Twitter in support of Ruch. 

Speaking privately, some lawmakers said they wanted to hear true contrition from Cuomo at this press conference, and they got that on Wednesday. Cuomo also expressed a willingness to change.

“And I’ve learned an important lesson," he said. "And I’m sorry. I’m sorry for whatever pain I caused anyone. I never intended it. And I will be the better for this experience.”