The pardons came hours before the end of the year and were issued after several editorial boards and columnists called on Mr. Cuomo, who took office in 2011, to exercise his clemency powers, something often used in abundance by governors during the holiday season. On Christmas Eve, for example, Gov. Jerry Brown of California announced more than 125 pardons to people convicted of crimes including drug use and drug dealing, gang activity and petty theft.

Mr. Cuomo followed suit, albeit in a limited fashion, on Tuesday, granting pardons to three individuals who had already completed their sentences. “These New Yorkers have paid their debt to society long ago, but have been prevented from having the same legal rights as others because of their past crimes,” the governor said in a statement. “Each has shown themselves to be law-abiding citizens who have contributed to society, given back to their communities and are deserving of a second chance.”

Two of the pardons went to drug offenders. Seymour Hunter, 70, was convicted of the attempted sale of a controlled substance in 1994, according to the governor’s office. Mr. Hunter served a single day in jail and successfully completed a rehabilitation program; once homeless, he now lives in Manhattan and works at a nonprofit group that works against homelessness. Mr. Cuomo’s office noted that Mr. Hunter, who was born in Jamaica but lives in the United States legally, is seeking American citizenship. Mr. Hunter on Tuesday said the pardon “will definitely help” that process go forward.

Another pardon was granted to Gerardo Alvarez, 49, of Lake Peekskill, in Putnam County. Mr. Alvarez was convicted in 2002 of seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor, after cocaine was found in a car in which he was traveling. Mr. Alvarez, who was born in Mexico, did a brief stint of community service and had his driver’s license suspended for six months after a guilty plea.

Mr. Alvarez has had a successful life since then, with a wife and two children, and has had the same employer for 25 years. But his criminal record complicated his life — he was once subject to deportation proceedings, despite being a legal resident. As in Mr. Hunter’s case, the pardon will allow him to pursue United States citizenship, according to the governor’s office.

The third pardon was granted to Rocco Paciello, 49, who was convicted of statutory rape in 1988, a charge related to a relationship Mr. Paciello, then 22, was having with a 15-year-old girlfriend. The girlfriend’s parents, who had once consented to the relationship, filed a complaint, and Mr. Paciello was arrested and spent eight days in jail and five years on probation. After his release, he married the girlfriend, and the two have remained married. A National Guard veteran, Mr. Paciello received his pardon after pledges of support from his pastor, his family and — perhaps most critically — the parents of his wife, who said they regretted the old complaint. Mr. Paciello lives in Clinton, N.Y., with his wife and two children.

For his part, Mr. Hunter said he was “grateful and thankful” for the governor’s action.