Hot City Hall race for Comptroller

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - The November elections in Grand Rapids will determine who will guide the city for the next four years. Voters will choose a mayor, two city commissioners and the city comptroller.

The city comptroller is seeking re-election, but faces a well-known challenger.

Watch the complete interview with each candidate for city comptroller on this page

So, what does the city comptroller actually do?

According to the current comptroller, Donijo DeJonge , in "the city of Grand Rapids it's the city auditor. It's the city accountant."

The auditor/watchdog description of the job is the one thing DeJonge and her opponent, Michael Sak , agree on.

"They pay the bills. They take the taxpayers' hard-earned money and (make) sure that the bills are properly paid and waste doesn't occur," Sak said.

They're running against each other to fill the remainder of the four-year term, with the winner serving through 2013.

The vacancy was created last year when long time comptroller Stan Milanowski resigned.

DeJonge was appointed by city commissioners, who passed over Sak for the job.

The race for city comptroller is one of the more hotly contested City Hall races this year, pitting DeJonge -- the GVSU public finance professor and political novice -- against Michael Sak, the longtime politician who was term-limited out of the Michigan state House in 2008. He's now a landlord for several rental properties.

Both have their ideas on how to run the office.

DeJonge has initiated a number of programs to make sure your tax dollars are being spent wisely, including boosting the auditing department. She's written a sort of citizens guide, explaining what the city does with taxpayer money as a way to make government more transparent.

Sak says he has some ideas along those lines as well. He, too, wants to make sure the office is transparent, and cut costs through best practices and technology.

The biggest difference between the two appears to be background.

Will voters choose the incumbent from academia with no political baggage?

"I have the experience, the background, the education to bring to this job," DeJonge said. "I think in less than a year's time I've proven that I can put things in motion that will help save the taxpayers dollars, either in the short term or over the long run."

Or will voters choose the political insider who believes that status would serve the office well?

"I've got an exceptional relationship with our elected officials, our business community, our educational community," Sak said. "And now you see what's happening at the state level where dollars are being siphoned off for other reasons, (I'd be able) to use my advocacy and my resources and connections in Lansing to assist in hoping that Grand Rapids can get its fair share of the money."

Their biggest difference, though, is how much time it takes to get the job done.

DeJonge said that depending on the goals of the person in the office, it should not automatically be assumed to be a fulltime position.

"At a minimum, somebody could come in, simply sign some papers, go to a few meetings, and that's it," she said. "To me, being the watchdog, that's not very accountable. So I thought, why not cut that salary?"

Sak believes the job should be a fulltime position.

The election is November 8. Stay with 24 Hour News 8 for complete coverage.