John Gutekunst Parker

Arizona’s primary election will be held on Tuesday, July 21. Early voting is currently underway in the County Recorder’s office. The Parker Pioneer is providing this information to La Paz County residents in order to keep them informed about which offices and candidates will be on the ballot.

Some of you may be old enough to remember the comic strip “Pogo” by Walt Kelly. From the late 1940s through the mid-1970s, Pogo Possum and his fellow “swamp critters” in the Okefenokee Swamp engaged in all sorts of political and social satire. You could say they were “Doonesbury” and “Bloom County” before “Doonesbury” and “Bloom County.”

A new vehicle window-tinting business, Onpoint Window Tinting and Detailing, had their grand opening and ribbon cutting on July 3. Parker Regional Chamber of Commerce Director Erica Daniels (left) welcomed the business to Parker. She was joined by Jaiden Chavira (center) and the shop's owner, Pablo Chavira.

The new circulation desk at the Parker Public Library is designed to be ballistic-proof and compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. In addition, it's smaller than the old desk and has created more public space in the lobby.

The Colorado River Indian Tribes Special Diabetes Project – Recreation Program celebrated the Fourth of July with sporting activities. These included a horseshoe tournament on July 4, a 3-on-3 coed basketball tournament July 2 at Irataba Hall, and a coed volleyball tournament on July 4, also at Irataba Hall. The photos are from the basketball and volleyball tournaments. In addition to attracting many teams, there were also many fans cheering in the audience.

The Arizona Diamondbacks have had two players named to the 2026 National League All-Star Team. One of them was someone most people expected would be named. The other was a veteran who is finally getting his chance to go to the mid-season classic.

The Parker Town Council gave tentative approval to a Town budget of $14 million for the 2026-27 fiscal year. While most of the funds are balanced or have surpluses, Dennis Osuch, the consultant hired by the Town to develop the budget, said the general fund is still running at a shortfall.

Our schools have a problem. It’s called “declining enrollment.” In other words, there has been a steady decline in the number of kids in our schools. There aren’t as many kids in school as there used to be.

One of the craziest and biggest events of the summer months in Parker was held Saturday, July 11. “Flog” is golf played with baseball bats, and this year’s tournament was

Two Parker Police officers were officially promoted at the July 8 Parker Town Council meeting. Wes Akalski was promoted to Sergeant, while Steve Maya was promoted to Lieutenant. Police Chief