In the Illinois comptroller’s race, incumbent Susana Mendoza decided to put her efforts solely into the Chicago mayor’s race, leaving uncontested Republican Bryan Drew to face state Rep. Margaret Croke (D-12th) in the race for the state’s chief financial office.

What does the state comptroller do?

The Illinois comptroller is the state’s chief financial officer. The office manages the state’s fiscal accounts, records all transactions, pays bills and reviews all expenditures and contracts. The comptroller also chairs the State Employees’ Retirement System Board and sits on the Illinois State Board of Investment, helping manage pensions for state employees. The comptroller also issues financial reports about the state’s fiscal affairs. In addition to managing the state’s finances, the office regulates cemeteries and handles the fiduciary protection of cemetery funds meant for the maintenance of grave sites in Illinois.

Who is Margaret Croke, the Democratic candidate?

Croke is a Chicago area state representative from Lincoln Park billing herself as a moderate Democrat. She says she wants to help modernize the office by creating a transparency system in which residents can see the path of public dollars from appropriation to payment, as well as moving the regulation of funeral home licensing solely under the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

Croke — who was backed by a contingent of Springfield Democrats, including Gov. JB Pritzker — landed nearly 35% of the vote in a four-way race during the March 17 Democratic primary, beating out more progressive candidates with boosts from suburban and downstate counties. She raised $1.8 million in the primary.

She has pointed to her statehouse ties as a positive, as well as her time on the House Revenue and Finance Committee and as chair of the Financial Institutions Committee.

“My experience has given me a deep understanding of how the public sector ecosystem works, which will help ensure that the most fiscally sound decisions are being made on behalf of taxpayers and those who are most in need,” Croke said in response to a Sun-Times candidate questionnaire.

Who is Bryan Drew, the Republican candidate?

Drew is a private attorney and cafe owner from downstate Benton. He ended the first quarter of fundraising with just more than $54,000. He and Mendoza have both criticized Croke for taking money from Pritzker and billionaire business executive Michael Sacks, questioning her independence given the donations. After the March primary, Drew said Croke is Pritzker’s “hand-picked candidate” and called her endorsements from the governor and Emanuel “Chris” Welch, Illinois speaker of the house, a “conflict of interest.”

“My opponent won’t hold any of these politicians accountable, not when she wants to keep climbing the political ladder. Illinoisans deserve better,” Drew said in March.

“Though limited in his experience in state government and finance,” Capitol News Illinois wrote this week, “Drew said owning a cafe with his wife has exposed him to the impact of high taxes on small businesses. He said he would use the ‘bully pulpit’ of the office to act as a watchdog for taxpayers.”