Nicholls and Adams face off in Yuma mayoral forum

Yuma voters got a direct look at Mayor Doug Nicholls and challenger Carlos Adams inside the Onvida Health administration center, where the city’s top race was put in front of residents on June 4. The forum, co-moderated by KAWC and The Yuma Sun, gave the incumbent and the newcomer a shared stage as the campaign moved toward the summer ballot.

Nicholls, the 27th mayor of Yuma, is seeking a fourth term after first being elected in 2014 and re-elected to a third term that began in January 2023. KAWC has reported that Nicholls, born in New Jersey and raised in Yuma after moving here at age 4, graduated from Yuma High School, studied engineering at Arizona State University and returned to Yuma in 1999. He has said he approaches the office “one term at a time.”

Adams brought a very different biography to the race. Born in San Diego and raised in Yuma, he grew up working in his parents’ Mexican crafts store at Southgate Mall and attended McGraw Elementary and other local schools. KAWC has described him as a political newcomer with a background in boxing and business, and Adams has centered his campaign on three pillars: transparency, opportunity and community.

The stakes go beyond a single office. The City of Yuma’s 2026 election will include the mayor’s seat, three city council seats and the presiding municipal judge, with city elections run on a nonpartisan basis and council seats elected at large. Nomination petitions were due by 5 p.m. on April 6, and the primary election is scheduled for July 21, 2026, followed by the general election on November 3.

Adams had already been speaking directly with residents before the forum. At a June 3 gathering at Kennedy Park, where he met voters under a ramada in 95-degree heat, attendees raised concerns about health care access, jobs, education support and trust in local government. Adams said he wanted the city to invest more in youth programs and redevelop the community, signaling the issues he intended to press as the campaign continued.

The forum did not provide a full transcript, but it marked a clear moment in a race that is now more visible to Yuma residents. With registration for the July 21 primary set to close on June 22, the mayor’s contest has moved squarely into the final stretch before voters decide who will steer city hall next.