Sakkers is a member of the liberal party, the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). In 1993 he became a member of the gedeputeerde staten of Groningen, with responsibility for economic and European affairs. In 2000 he became mayor of the city of Heerlen, in the southern province of Limburg. There he was responsible for Operatie Hartslag (operation heartbeat), which was supposed to lower drugproblems by taking care of addicts and increasing police presence.Een pact van het hart- Politieacademy In 2003 he became mayor of Eindhoven, in the province of North Brabant. During his term in office he was responsible for the increased cooperation between the three local technology cities Eindhoven, Aachen and Leuven.
