Carol Smith seeks another term, touts teamwork and continuity in Yuma

Carol Smith is asking Yuma voters for another term on the City Council, arguing that the city needs continuity, teamwork and steady follow-through as it heads toward a July 21 primary. The 2026 municipal ballot will also include a general election on Nov. 3, with voters choosing a mayor, three council members and a presiding municipal judge.

Smith launched her reelection bid on April 17, 2026, and cast the race as a test of whether Yuma keeps growing with enough roads, water, utilities and public safety behind it. Her campaign message leans heavily on the idea that council decisions are made through discussion and compromise, not by one member acting alone, a framing that fits a city where growth pressure and day-to-day service demands often collide.

That argument also doubles as a practical voter guide: Smith is telling residents that another term would mean the same style of governing she says she has already brought to City Hall. She describes herself as someone who listens, works with people who disagree with her and stays engaged with residents even when public debate gets tense. The City of Yuma says its government is meant to be a forum for public discussion and decision-making, which puts Smith’s emphasis on collaboration at the center of her case.

The ballot field is already taking shape. City election materials list Smith as a primary-election candidate for one of three council seats, alongside Henry Valenzuela and Ronald Van Why, with write-in candidates Derek Egeberg and Priscila Ruedas also listed. Earlier reporting said candidates were collecting 998 petition signatures to qualify for the ballot, with signatures due by March 23, 2026. In February, Smith was the only incumbent city council member seeking reelection at that point, while Deputy Mayor Leslie McClendon and Councilman Arturo Morales were not running.

Smith’s background gives her campaign a local and institutional base. City biographical information says she was raised in Yuma, earned a master’s degree in nursing from the University of Arizona and served on the Crane School District governing board. Other profiles describe her as a 46-year-old neonatal intensive care nurse and mother of two. She was elected to the Yuma City Council in 2022 and is now seeking a second term.

Smith was also set to serve as Yuma’s deputy mayor for the 2025 calendar year, a role that adds to her claim that she can help keep the city’s current agenda moving. Her reelection pitch is straightforward: keep the same governing style, keep the same priorities and keep working through the growth, budgeting and public safety questions that still define Yuma’s future.