Filling a key vacancy in his inner circle, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Friday named one of Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman’s top aides to serve as his new communications director. The aide, Melissa DeRosa, is Mr. Schneiderman’s acting chief of staff. She will start her new position on April 1 and succeed Allison Gollust, who recently left the governor’s office after only a few months to reunite with her former boss, the television executive Jeffrey Zucker, at CNN. Ms. DeRosa, 30, is well known in Albany. She first worked in politics as an intern for the political director of the New York State A.F.L.-C.I.O. when she was 16; before joining Mr. Schneiderman’s office in 2011 as deputy chief of staff, she was the New York State director for Organizing for America, a group formed by President Obama’s election campaign to build grass-roots support. She was also the director of communications and legislation for Cordo and Company, an Albany lobbying firm. “I have known and respected Melissa for many years,” Mr. Cuomo said in a statement, “and believe her experience, character and intellect will be an invaluable asset as she leads our communications effort.” In a memorandum to his staff, Mr. Schneiderman, who like Mr. Cuomo is a Democrat, described Ms. DeRosa as “a critical member of a talented team leading our office’s intergovernmental affairs, legislative agenda and communication efforts.” He said, “With her talent, insight and energy, Melissa will be missed.”
