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Mercer council hires Katherin Volochenko as city auditor after split vote
Summary
The Mercer City Council voted Oct. 22, 2025 to hire Katherin Volochenko as city auditor following competing preferences among councilmembers; the council also approved adding her to city bank accounts and she took the oath of office the same night.
The Mercer City Council voted Oct. 22, 2025 to hire Katherin Volochenko as the city's auditor after a contested council roll call.
Mayor Ken Thomsen told the council he had interviewed four candidates and "recommended Katherin Volochenko be hired for the position." Council debate showed differing preferences: Dan Gardiner said he preferred Debbie Hausauer and Randy Zinke said he preferred Amy Ones. Erika Lorenz moved to hire Volochenko and Dan Gardiner seconded. Gardiner and Lorenz voted yes, Zinke voted no and Volochenko abstained; the motion carried.
After the vote, the council approved a second motion to add Volochenko to all City of Mercer bank accounts; Gardiner and Lorenz voted aye and Zinke voted no. According to the meeting record, Volochenko then "took the oath of office for the position of Auditor." The minutes do not record additional specifics about Volochenko's planned start date, salary, or supervisory arrangements.
Council members who spoke during the personnel discussion identified multiple candidates and their preferences but did not provide further public detail about the hiring process criteria or references. The council's recorded votes show a split on the appointment rather than a unanimous decision.
The council handled the personnel motions during its regular meeting at Mercer City Hall. No legal authorities or ordinance citations were given in the public record for the hire; the minutes list the motion, vote tally and the oath.
The next administrative steps recorded in the minutes are the bank-account update and the oath of office recorded in the meeting minutes; no additional follow-up tasks or reporting deadlines for the auditor hire were specified in the transcript.
