History
The office was created as an appointive office in 1801, and in 1831, the Comptroller became head of the department of finance. In 1884 the office became elective, and in 1938 the comptroller became head of a separate, independent department of the City's government.
Until it was found unconstitutional in 1989, the Comptroller served on the eight-member New York City Board of Estimate, which was composed of the Mayor of New York City, the Comptroller and the President of the New York City Council, each of whom was elected citywide and had two votes, and the five Borough presidents, each having one vote.
If vacancies should simultaneously occur in the offices of Mayor of New York City and New York City Public Advocate (formerly President of the City Council or Board of Aldermen), the Comptroller would become Acting Mayor.
These have been the three offices elected city-wide, so traditional practice has tried to balance a winning three-candidate ticket among the City's different ethnic, religious and political interests (and, more recently, between the sexes). But, while there is a delicate interaction between the campaigns for the three offices, the actual election results can sometimes differ quite markedly. (For examples of three such municipal tickets, see the article about Alan Hevesi).
Read more about this topic: New York City Comptroller
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