Clean Energy Team Wins Control of Salt River Project in Arizona SRP Election
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Arizona's largest public utility will be run by renewable energy advocates for the first time after a contentious election that drew unprecedented political attention and spending.
A slate of clean energy candidates has won a majority of seats on the Salt River Project's power board, flipping the utility's agenda toward solar, battery storage and other renewable energy options. The victory came despite months of aggressive campaigning by Turning Point USA's political arm, which spent heavily to push pro-industry candidates.
The results emerged Wednesday night after Tuesday's election for the utility's boards and councils. Turnout exploded to more than 36,000 ballots cast for the power utility election alone, a massive increase from the typical 7,500 votes in previous elections. The surge came after Turning Point Action waged a large-scale get-out-the-vote campaign and endorsed nine candidates across the utility's various elections.
The Board Flip
The clean energy slate will control eight of 14 seats on the power board, up from six in the previous election. The shift comes after winning key district board seats with victories for:
- Krista O'Brien, who defeated Turning Point's Rusty Kennedy at-large District Board Seat 12
- Kathy Mohr-Almeida, who beat Kelly Cooper at-large District Board Seat 14
- Lupe Conchas, who won Division 4 Board of Governors
- Ken Clark, who won Division 6 Board of Governors
The environmental groups are claiming victory because they now control a majority of the board. Sandra Kennedy, a clean energy board member and former state lawmaker, said the board members have just kind of been followers of management, so whatever management wanted, they got it. I think it's a new day.
Turning Point Claims Victory
Meanwhile, Turning Point Action is claiming a huge victory on social media. Tyler Bowyer, a Turning Point executive, said Democrats had told donors this was the inevitable year they would win President and Vice President of SRP and control the agenda. They failed massively with a huge turnout.
Two Turning Point-endorsed candidates still won the top of the ticket:
- Chris Dobson won board president with 5,401 votes
- Barry Paceley won board vice president with 4,531 votes
Both candidates won by significant margins, and Turning Point gestured to those wins to claim a momentous win.
The Stakes for Arizona Residents
SRP serves more than 1 million people in metro Phoenix and sets policy that affects electricity and water rates across the region. The utility's two elected boards work with management to establish rates and decide what type of technology and power SRP invests in.
The utility projects it will need to double its power capacity within a decade as data centers and semiconductor factories make Phoenix a destination for energy-intensive facilities. The progressive groups want to make sure data center companies pay their fair share.
On the other side, Turning Point's effort focused on keeping the controversial Green New Deal out of Arizona and avoiding a rapid shift to renewable energy.
A Unique Electoral System
SRP elections fill the roles of president, vice president and various seats on the board and council of the Salt River Valley Water Users' Association, along with the Salt River Agricultural Improvement and Power District. All association and district positions have four-year terms.
The utility has a unique electoral system that only allows landowners within SRP territory to cast votes. For most positions, those votes are allocated based on a landowner's total acreage, giving large property owners more influence and leaving most homeowners with a fraction of a vote.
Results will become official after a canvass by the SRP boards on April 13. The final voter cast their ballot at almost 11 p.m., officials said. Staff worked late into the night to tally ballots and were continuing the count.
Record Turnout
SRP received roughly 36,000 ballots this year, spokesperson Jennifer Schuricht said as the results were still being finalized. That's about four times the total number of voters who participated in 2024. The new influx of voters heavily favored the clean energy slate.
More than 100 voters were still in line when polls closed at 7 p.m. The final voter cast their ballot at almost 11 p.m. A line of voters stretched around the block at SRP headquarters in Tempe. It was a jamboree-like atmosphere where volunteers handed out water, pizza and fried chicken, and candidates raced to turn in the last few ballots they had collected from voters.
National Attention
The race gained national attention this year amid rising power and water rates and involvement from national political groups. The battle pitted basically two groups against each other: the incumbent leaders versus the clean energy team.
Utility elections traditionally have been sleepy contests, but this year's races saw unprecedented political spending and surging turnout. The final results can be found on the SRP website.