Sourced Profile · PV 2026
Kell Palguta
On the issues we track, Palguta has the most documented record in this race: the voter-approved General Plan, steady housing production, real water planning, a balanced budget. Read it in full and he stands out as the clearest choice on the ballot for the growth we advocate.
The 60-second version
If you read nothing else
Before you read a word
Exactly what this rating measures
Same method for every candidate. Facts first, then our opinion, walled off from them.
What the rating is based on
- His recorded votes and actions as Mayor since 2019.
- The budgets he adopted and the projects the Council approved.
- Town records too, from the budget to the project pages to the water portfolio to General Plan 2035.
- Public campaign-finance filings.
- All of it provable, and linked right where we say it.
What it is NOT based on
- His character, personality, or temperament.
- Anything he has said, including any comment about seniors or any other group.
- His police career, or any rumor about how it ended. Not our subject, and not something a voting record can settle.
- Anything we can't tie to a public document.
The scorecard
Seven relevant issues. Tap to open.
These are the issues that touch our mission: housing, water, growth, and the money and infrastructure behind them. This is not a full read on where the candidate stands on everything, just the ground we cover. Each card: the sourced facts in one tab, our take in the other. Tap any card.
Arizona won't let a town keep building unless it can prove a 100-year water supply. Every new subdivision in PV has to show its own water before a shovel goes in the ground. That single rule shapes almost everything that follows.
The long-term fix is the Big Chino Water Ranch, a parcel up north that PV co-owns as a 45.9% partner. On paper it could pipe in up to 8,068 acre-feet a year. (An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons, roughly what a few Arizona homes use in a year.) The catch: the pipe doesn't exist. There's been no real pumping since the towns bought the ranch in 2004, and building it means about 30 miles of pipeline, up to 11 wells, and a pump station, at a 2024 estimate near $261 million (cost update). Big Chino is years away, not a supply the town can lean on today. At the forum he called the water question both yes and no, said the town uses about 5 million gallons a day, described building one of the most aggressive conservation policies in Yavapai County, and noted no Arizona community has reached safe yield in decades (July 6 candidate forum).
Who he is
The short version
Palguta moved to Prescott Valley in 1996 and joined the Prescott Valley Police Department in 1998. The Town's official biography runs long on his police career, crediting him with a Medal of Valor, an Officer of the Year award, and MADD Officer of the Year twice over (Town bio). He retired from the force, was sworn in as Mayor on January 10, 2019, and won re-election in 2022 (Council roster). In late 2025 he announced a third-term run and made the ballot (Daily Courier). He works in real estate and construction, so housing is his day job and his ballot issue both.
His pitch hasn't changed across three campaigns. Keep PV local. Treat residents like the customer. Stay reachable enough that they can actually find you. He posts his cell number, writes a monthly column, and runs a weekly video. No matter your interpretation, he's been consistent for seven years.
"The Town of Prescott Valley is in the Customer Service Industry and the citizens of Prescott Valley are the customers as well as the boss."His campaign site, reelectpalguta.com
Endorsements & money
Who’s behind him, and who’s paying
The facts: the campaign-finance reports on file with the Town Clerk show his committee runs on individual donations, with no corporate money and no PAC money, and it has out-raised his opponents, who are mostly self-funded. You can open and compare every candidate's filing yourself (campaign-finance page). On endorsements, his own endorsements page lists the Prescott Valley Police Officers Association and the CAFMA firefighters, plus Little League and business support. Endorsement lists are self-reported by every campaign, his included, so treat them as claims you can spot-check.
Our take: the funding is coherent and fully disclosed. A builder-friendly mayor draws builder-friendly individual donors, and the union backing is a signal from people who worked alongside him. None of it moves the rating, which rests on the record itself.
Our verdict
The bottom line
The town is short thousands of homes, and his record is the closest thing to a real answer on this ballot. He championed the growth blueprint. He funds the water and the roads that make building actually work. He keeps the budget balanced with a big reserve and no property tax. That combination is what keeps a growing town livable instead of just bigger and more expensive.
Is he perfect? No. We'd push him to keep the infrastructure a step ahead of the rooftops, and to be straight with people that Big Chino is a distant, expensive maybe. So we won't pretend we agree on every call.
But we don't rate the man. We rate the record. And his is the most complete smart-growth record in the field, by a lot. A rating this good is going to get us accused of carrying his water. Fine. Every source is linked above. Open them. If the record were worse, so would the rating be.
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Sourced Profile · PV 2026
Lawrence “Larry” Neigel
On the issues we track, Neigel runs on transparency and water, and at the July 6 forum he laid out specific positions: against the Lakeshore 650 annexation, developer-paid infrastructure before rooftops, a regional water coalition, and public comment on every agenda item.
The 60-second version
If you read nothing else
Before you read a word
Exactly what this rating measures
Same method for every candidate. Facts first, then our opinion, walled off from them.
What the rating is based on
- His stated positions, from on-the-record interviews, press coverage, and the July 6 forum.
- His public campaign-finance filings.
- Town records on the election and the offices in play.
- All of it linked right where we say it, so you can check us.
What it is NOT based on
- His character, personality, or temperament.
- His or his endorsers' opinions of the current mayor. We rate positions, not the feud.
- Any rumor, or anyone's police-career history. Not our subject.
- Positions we can't find him actually stating. We won't invent them.
The scorecard
Seven relevant issues. Tap to open.
These are the issues that touch our mission: housing, water, growth, and the money and infrastructure behind them. This is not a full read on where the candidate stands on everything, just the ground we cover. Each card: the sourced facts in one tab, our take in the other. Tap any card.
Who he is
The short version
His campaign centers on transparency and getting residents back into local decisions, and he frames the race as a choice between the town's current direction and a more open one. For most of the race he ran on that direction with little detail. At the July 6 candidate forum he laid out specific positions on growth, water, the budget, and jobs, which is what this page weighs. Where he names a problem, we also note what the town already does about it, so you can judge how much is a genuine change.
"Any agenda item that comes before the town council, I will open up for a public comment."In his own words
Endorsements & money
Who’s behind him, and who’s paying
The facts: per his Q1 2026 report on file with the Town Clerk, his committee reported about $1,533 in monetary contributions, most of it (about $1,470) his own money, plus $63 from small individual donors and $250 in-kind (donated goods or services). No corporate money, no PAC money. You can open and compare every candidate's filing yourself (campaign-finance page). On endorsements, former mayoral candidate Bill Williams dropped out of the race and endorsed Neigel (Prescott eNews).
Our take: the money matches the message: a grassroots, mostly self-funded run, fully disclosed. We're noting the Williams endorsement as a fact and leaving the personal attacks that came with it alone, because we rate positions, not grudges.
Our verdict
The bottom line
Neigel runs a grassroots campaign built on transparency, and he holds that line consistently. At the July 6 forum (video) he laid out specific positions, and some of it lands with us, the public-comment mechanism most of all. Across the six issues we grade, though, most of what he offered either restates what the town already does, rests on a premise that doesn’t hold, or names a goal without the plan to reach it. His transparency proposal earns an Aligned. The rest come in Mixed, and together that’s where the overall rating settles. He also has no council record yet, so much of this is a platform we can’t test against votes. If he governs and builds a record, we grade the record.
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Sourced Profile · PV 2026
Charles “Chuck” Ables
On the issues we track, Ables wants the water question settled first, civility brought back to the dais, and Lakeshore 650 held until the water is handled. He was born and raised in Arizona, spent decades on the Ruger factory floor, and raised five kids here who all left, which he says is what drives him. Across his positions and his forum answers, he leans opposed.
The 60-second version
If you read nothing else
Before you read a word
Exactly what this rating measures
Same method for every candidate. Facts first, then our opinion, walled off from them.
What the rating is based on
- His stated positions, on the record at the July 6 candidate forum.
- His public campaign-finance filings with the Town Clerk.
- Town records on the election and the seats in play.
- All of it linked right where we say it, so you can check us.
What it is NOT based on
- His character, personality, or temperament.
- The slate he's associated with, or anyone else's opinion of it. We rate his positions, not his company.
- Rumor, social media chatter, or anything we can't tie to a document or a recording.
- Positions we can't find him actually stating. We won't invent them.
The scorecard
Seven relevant issues. Tap to open.
These are the issues that touch our mission: housing, water, growth, and the money and infrastructure behind them. This is not a full read on where the candidate stands on everything, just the ground we cover. Each card: the sourced facts in one tab, our take in the other. Tap any card.
Who he is
The short version
Charles "Chuck" Ables was born and raised in Arizona and has lived in Prescott Valley for more than 35 years, most of it in the original old-town core. He spent roughly three decades as a blue-collar worker at Sturm, Ruger & Co., the firearms manufacturer whose plant sits in neighboring Prescott, and raised five kids here. All five left town, to North Carolina, Portland, and Phoenix, a fact he brought up himself at the forum as the reason affordability and jobs are personal for him (July 6 candidate forum). He gathered the required petition signatures and made the ballot as one of three challengers this cycle (Daily Courier; Town candidates page).
He's running for one of the two four-year council seats, against incumbents Kendall Schumacher and Michael Greer. His pitch is simple: water before rooftops, civility before politics, and don't pretend to expertise you don't have. Where he names a problem, we also note what the town already does about it, so you can judge how much is a genuine change.
"We live in a desert, no matter how you slice and dice it. We need to watch our water."In his own words, July 6 forum
Endorsements & money
Who’s behind him, and who’s paying
The facts: his committee registered with the Town Clerk on March 19, 2026, and his Q1 2026 report shows $615.90 in total receipts, $15.90 spent, and $600.00 on hand. The filing shows no corporate money and no PAC money. You can open and compare every candidate's report yourself (campaign-finance page). His campaign runs mainly through a Facebook page (ABLES for Prescott Valley).
Our take: a six-hundred-dollar campaign is about as grassroots as a filing gets, and it is fully disclosed. Nothing here moves the rating either way.
Our verdict
The bottom line
He is candid about the limits of his own answers, saying he is not a hydrologist, that he does not know which industry to chase, and that a property tax should at least be on the table. His ethics-and-civility platform is a direct response to how heated this year has gotten, which earns his Aligned on governance. Across the rest, his positions tend to name a goal without the mechanism, or restate work the town already does. On the heaviest issue he lands Opposed: his plan is to stop Lakeshore 650 and build existing lots instead, but the town is already about 5,127 homes short by 2040 (study), his empty-lots number is unconfirmed, and pausing the annexation only sends the land back to looser county rules. His water worry is legitimate, but the pause does not address it. On roads and parks he took no position we could grade. On budget, asked what he would do if the general fund had to grow, he leaned toward a uniform property tax but committed to nothing and passed on a sales-tax increase, so that one lands Mixed. With housing opposed and carrying the most weight, three issues mixed and one aligned, the overall rating leans opposed.
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Sourced Profile · PV 2026
Michael Greer
Greer is the incumbent with a voting record on the exact issues we track. She was one of two no votes on the Lakeshore 650 approval, says she backed bringing the land into town but wanted the 650 plan changed, calls herself smart growth, and will not support a town property tax. Across her record and her forum answers, she lands Aligned.
The 60-second version
If you read nothing else
Before you read a word
Exactly what this rating measures
Same method for every candidate. Facts first, then our opinion, walled off from them.
What the rating is based on
- Her positions stated on the record, including the July 6 candidate forum.
- Her service on the council since December 2022, tied to Town records.
- Her public campaign-finance filings, including filing dates.
- All of it linked right where we say it, so you can check us.
What it is NOT based on
- Her character, personality, or temperament.
- Her career before Prescott Valley, or her politics before this office. We rate town positions, not biographies.
- Rumor, social media chatter, or anything we can't tie to a document or a recording.
- Council votes we haven't verified against official minutes. Where we rely on her own account of a vote, we say so.
The scorecard
Seven relevant issues. Tap to open.
These are the issues that touch our mission: housing, water, growth, and the money and infrastructure behind them. This is not a full read on where the candidate stands on everything, just the ground we cover. Each card: the sourced facts in one tab, our take in the other. Tap any card.
Who she is
The short version
Michael Greer grew up in Santa Barbara and spent a 30-year career in Los Angeles as a casting director, work she credits with teaching her contract negotiation and how to navigate difficult rooms. She moved to Prescott Valley in March 2020, ran for council in 2022, and was sworn in on December 8, 2022, for a term ending this year (Town bio; Daily Courier). The Town bio sums up her platform in one sentence we'd struggle to improve on: thoughtful, responsible growth, more businesses and tourism, small-town personality preserved.
She's seeking re-election to one of the two four-year seats, alongside fellow incumbent Kendall Schumacher and against challenger Chuck Ables (Town candidates page). Her record points one direction: growth that pays for itself.
"We need growth in order to have a vibrant economy and we need a vibrant economy in order to pay for our water resources and the infrastructure necessary to maintain those."In her own words, July 6 forum
Endorsements & money
Who’s behind her, and who’s paying
The facts: her committee registered with the Town Clerk on November 6, 2025. Her Q1 2026 report shows a small operation: a few hundred dollars from individual donors, a small amount of her own money, and modest in-kind support. No corporate money, no PAC money on the filing. One compliance note, reported the same way for everyone: the Q1 report was due April 15, was received April 16, and a notice of delinquency was sent the same day. Open the filings yourself (campaign-finance page); the notice is available by public records request (justfoia).
Our take: what we look for in campaign money is where it comes from and whether it is disclosed. Hers is a small operation funded by individual donors and her own money, filed in the public record, with no corporate or PAC money on the report.
Our verdict
The bottom line
She voted against the original 650 plan because she wanted it improved, and for the annexation because she wanted the town, not the county, setting the terms. She calls herself smart growth and connects the economy, the water bill, and the road budget as one conversation. Her record is three and a half years deep, her water framing is more optimistic than the state's overdraft numbers, and her Q1 finance report drew a delinquency notice. None of that changes the direction of the record: build, plan, and pay for it. Aligned.
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Sourced Profile · PV 2026
Kendall Schumacher
On the issues we track, Schumacher voted yes on Lakeshore 650, says infrastructure should go in as the town grows rather than before, and said no to new taxes. She has served on the council since 2018 and argued at the forum that people come whether you want them to or not. Across her record and her forum answers, she lands Aligned.
The 60-second version
If you read nothing else
Before you read a word
Exactly what this rating measures
Same method for every candidate. Facts first, then our opinion, walled off from them.
What the rating is based on
- Her recorded votes and service on the council since 2018, tied to Town records and press coverage.
- Her positions stated on the record at the July 6 candidate forum.
- Her public campaign-finance filings, including filing dates.
- All of it linked right where we say it, so you can check us.
What it is NOT based on
- Her character, personality, or temperament.
- Anyone's opinion of her, including angry meeting commenters and friendly ones alike.
- Rumor, social media chatter, or anything we can't tie to a document or a recording.
- Family details beyond what she raised herself, on stage, as part of her own answers.
The scorecard
Seven relevant issues. Tap to open.
These are the issues that touch our mission: housing, water, growth, and the money and infrastructure behind them. This is not a full read on where the candidate stands on everything, just the ground we cover. Each card: the sourced facts in one tab, our take in the other. Tap any card.
Who she is
The short version
Kendall Schumacher was elected to the council in 2018 and re-elected in 2022, and is now near the end of her second four-year term (Council roster). She and her husband Jerry moved to Prescott Valley in 2014, and she has worked in real estate and bookkeeping (Town bio). At the forum she said her son came home from the Marines, attended Embry-Riddle while working at Costco, and later left for a job in the valley, where he pays about $1,800 for a one-bedroom apartment. Her first home was a mobile home on a lot she bought, improved, and sold at a $30,000 profit (July 6 candidate forum).
She is seeking re-election to one of the two four-year seats, in a three-way race with fellow incumbent Michael Greer and challenger Chuck Ables (Town candidates page). At the forum she said she would have voted no on the original Big Chino partnership and defended her yes on Lakeshore 650.
"Everybody's wanting a grocery store, but they don't want it to grow. They don't want to grow here."In her own words, July 6 forum
Endorsements & money
Who’s behind her, and who’s paying
The facts: her committee registered with the Town Clerk on March 20, 2026. Her Q1 2026 report is a no-activity filing: $0 raised, $0 spent, $0 on hand for the period, which means no corporate money and no PAC money. One compliance note, reported the same way for everyone: the report was due April 15, the treasurer's certification is dated April 15, the Clerk stamped it received April 16, and a notice of delinquency was sent the same day. Open the filings yourself (campaign-finance page); the notice is available by public records request (justfoia).
Our take: a zero-dollar campaign from an eight-year incumbent means the record is the whole campaign. The paperwork arrived a day late with nothing in it, and we note it once, the same as we do for anyone.
Our verdict
The bottom line
On the issue we weight heaviest, Schumacher backs Lakeshore 650 on the record and was not among the two no votes when the council approved it 4-2 (Daily Courier), defended in public with specifics about soil, sewer, and the county alternative. Eight years of balanced budgets, a clear sequencing answer on infrastructure, and a jobs argument grounded in how site selection works round out a record that leans toward supply. The deductions are on the page too: a factual slip about where the town's water comes from, and a day-late, zero-dollar finance report. Neither changes the direction of eight years of votes. The rating settles at Aligned, with housing her strongest issue.
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Sourced Profile · PV 2026
Kymberli Lopez
Lopez was hesitant to put a label on herself, calling the growth categories buzzwords, before settling on smart growth and defining it: how subdivisions get built, how water conservation is designed into new housing, and public safety scaling with the town. She backs Prop 492, because annexation puts the water rules, the impact fees, and every future phase of the project under Town control. She rules out a town property tax, and she wants realtors, developers, and the contractors association back in the housing conversation. She was appointed in June 2025 to the seat Bill Williams vacated, so she has one year on the dais. She lands Aligned.
The 60-second version
If you read nothing else
Before you read a word
Exactly what this rating measures
Same method for every candidate. Facts first, then our opinion, walled off from them.
What the rating is based on
- Her positions stated on the record at the July 6 candidate forum.
- Her service on the council since June 2025, tied to Town records and press coverage.
- Public records on her appointment and community roles.
- All of it linked right where we say it, so you can check us.
What it is NOT based on
- Her character, personality, or temperament.
- Her family, beyond what she raised herself on stage as part of her own answers.
- Rumor, social media chatter, or anything we can't tie to a document or a recording.
- Votes she never had the chance to cast. She was appointed after the Lakeshore votes, and we won't grade a ghost.
The scorecard
Seven relevant issues. Tap to open.
These are the issues that touch our mission: housing, water, growth, and the money and infrastructure behind them. This is not a full read on where the candidate stands on everything, just the ground we cover. Each card: the sourced facts in one tab, our take in the other. Tap any card.
Who she is
The short version
Kymberli Lopez has lived in Prescott Valley for 31 years, raising her family here with her late husband, Sgt. Richard Lopez. Her volunteer résumé is long even by small-town standards: chair of the Humboldt Unified School District's $40 million bond committee, president of Prescott Frontier Days Rodeo, past CASA for Kids board member, past president of the PV Chamber Ambassadors, Friends of Parks and Recreation, and 2008 Prescott Valley Citizen of the Year (Town bio).
When Bill Williams resigned his council seat in May 2025, months into his term, the council interviewed four finalists in a public meeting and selected Lopez on May 29; she was sworn in June 5 (Signals AZ). She's now running to keep the seat for the remaining two years of that term, against challenger Jason Thornton (Town candidates page).
"Until we can all put our egos aside and sit down and have that conversation, we're never going to solve the problem."In her own words, July 6 forum
Endorsements & money
Who’s behind her, and who’s paying
The facts: she campaigns through a public page (Kymberli Lopez for PV Town Council). As of this writing we have not located a campaign-finance filing for her committee on the Town's campaign-finance page. That is not an accusation; Arizona law only requires a committee once a candidate raises or spends $500 (ARS 16-905, per the Town), and a below-threshold campaign files nothing. If a filing exists or appears, we'll link it here. Check for yourself (campaign-finance page) or request records (justfoia).
Our take: we report what the paper trail shows, including when it shows nothing. A campaign under the $500 threshold is legal and, frankly, common at this level. The moment there's a filing, this section gets numbers.
Our verdict
The bottom line
She names smart growth and then defines it. She backs annexation for the control it buys the Town. She treats water as a design problem rather than a stop sign, rules out a property tax, and puts the builders back in the housing conversation. That is a coherent smart-growth position, and she argued it without hedging.
What she does not have yet is a long record. One year on the dais gives her the FY26 budget vote, and two of her seven cards sit at no position because she has not taken one. She lands Aligned rather than higher for that reason alone. Nothing she has said or done runs against the town's documented housing need, and most of it runs straight at it.
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Sourced Profile · PV 2026
Jason Thornton
Thornton describes himself as sustainable growth, which he defines as building infrastructure first and slowing the pace of new homes. He is against Prop 492, citing water, traffic, and who pays for the infrastructure. On the budget he rules out a property tax and prioritizes funding the police. He is the clearest slow-growth vote in the race, which is where our housing rating turns.
The 60-second version
If you read nothing else
Before you read a word
Exactly what this rating measures
Same method for every candidate. Facts first, then our opinion, walled off from them.
What the rating is based on
- His positions stated on the record at the July 6 candidate forum.
- His candidate filings and campaign-finance report, tied to Town records.
- Public documents on the projects and water tools he referenced.
- All of it linked right where we say it, so you can check us.
What it is NOT based on
- His character, personality, or temperament.
- His background or occupation, beyond what he raised himself on stage.
- Rumor, social media chatter, or anything we can't tie to a document or a recording.
- Votes he never cast. He is a challenger with no council record, so we grade stated positions and say so.
The scorecard
Seven relevant issues. Tap to open.
These are the issues that touch our mission: housing, water, growth, and the money and infrastructure behind them. This is not a full read on where the candidate stands on everything, just the ground we cover. Each card: the sourced facts in one tab, our take in the other. Tap any card.
Who he is
The short version
Jason Thornton is a retired resident of the Dewey area east of Prescott Valley, running as a challenger for the two-year council seat. He describes a lifetime, about 60 years by his own account, in the hot-rod and motorsports world, and he leans on that network in his pitch to recruit manufacturers to the area (July 6 candidate forum).
He filed his candidacy in the February-to-March 2026 window, gathering the required signatures to make the ballot, and is one of three challengers taking on sitting members this cycle. He is running against appointed incumbent Kymberli Lopez for the seat Bill Williams vacated, the only two-year term on the ballot (Daily Courier; Town candidates page).
"This is a better, safer place, not only for their employees, but to attract a lot more manufacturing places to come here."In his own words, July 6 forum
Endorsements & money
Who’s behind him, and who’s paying
The facts: Thornton registered a candidate committee, the Committee to Elect Jason Thornton, Town Council of Prescott Valley, in March 2026, listing himself as chair and treasurer (Town campaign finance). His first-quarter 2026 report shows minimal financial activity, and we found no compliance notice against him. We have not located an endorsement slate for him; the anti-growth organizations active this cycle, PVCA and STOPLakeshore650, publish recommended-candidate lists that are worth checking directly (PVCA).
Our take: we report what the paper trail shows. His filings are in order and carry no compliance issue. If an endorsement or a funded report appears, this section gets updated with it.
Our verdict
The bottom line
Thornton is consistent. His jobs answer is aligned with us, naming specific employers and specific reasons they would move here. On budget he rules out a property tax, which we share, but the new revenue he proposed is a targeted tax on two industries rather than a broad-based approach.
On housing, the town is short thousands of homes, and his answer is to build fewer of them and to gate the rest behind infrastructure with no funding plan attached. He was against Lakeshore 650, he warned against "another Granville rooftop city," and he said the town should cut back on building. On water he called the problem real but rejected reclaimed water without naming a replacement supply.
We do not rate the man. We rate the positions and their impact, and a slow-growth platform in a housing shortage puts him at Leans Opposed.
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