Auditor Susan Montee (D - Buchanan), 46, will make a formal statement to kick off her campaign on Wednesday, September 28, 12:00 noon at the Buchanan County Courthouse in St. Joseph, Missouri.

Auditor Montee is one of nineteen elected County Auditors in the state and has held the post since 2000. Buchanan County, in Northwest Missouri, has not had an elected statewide office holder in 125 years. Auditor Montee plans to campaign in all areas of Missouri, with particular attention to out-state regions.

As both a CPA and attorney, if elected, Auditor Montee would be the first State Auditor to hold both accounting and law licenses. Montee will emphasize that she is qualified to lead the Auditor’s office in an era of both financial auditing and performance auditing of taxpayer monies. Auditor Montee believes her experience will convince voters statewide to place her in the office currently held by fellow democrat Claire McCaskill.

We must have experience in this office because it is instrumental to keep the checks and balances and hold government accountable for all actions using the tax dollars entrusted to it. The progress and achievement we have experienced over the past six years must not be wasted,” said Montee.

Auditor Montee was born and raised in St. Joseph, graduating from Bishop LeBlond High School. She has an undergraduate degree in accounting from Drury College in Springfield with minors in economics and business administration. Auditor Montee became a Certified Public Accountant in 1985. Montee obtained her law degree, with distinction, from the University of Missouri - Kansas City in 2000.

Montee was elected to St. Joseph City Council in 1998. In 2000, she was elected Buchanan County Auditor. She served the county for two years concurrently with her service on the City Council. In 2002, Auditor Montee was re-elected to a four-year term as County Auditor.

Montee added, “As the Buchanan County Auditor, I have seen first hand, the difficulty governments face in trying to deliver services in an era of shrinking budgets. I understand that government must make every dollar count, and an auditor must count every taxpayer dollar.”

Susan Montee has been married twenty-one years to attorney James Montee. They have three children, Amanda age 18, Andy age 17 and Austin age 16. The family attends Christ Episcopal Church. Susan is the daughter of Arlene Humphrey of St. Joseph and U.S. Marine Galen Humphrey, Missing-in-Action in Vietnam since 1966.

Auditor Montee currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Missouri State Democratic Party and has held numerous local positions within the Democratic Party. Montee is a member of both the Missouri Society of CPAs and the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys.