In 2002, Pringle re-entered electoral politics with his campaign for Mayor of Anaheim, California, the tenth-most populous city in the state. Pringle won a multi-candidate race, with 36% of the vote, finishing 7% ahead of his nearest competitor, Anaheim City Councilwoman Lucille King (29%). During his tenure as mayor, Pringle and the Anaheim City Council over which he presided enacted a number of reforms that "The Orange County Register" depicted as "freedom-friendly." According to the "Los Angeles Times", "Pringle has built such a strong reputation for his aggressive pro-business approach to governance (creative tax waivers, sweeping zone changes, market incentives to redevelop run-down parts of the city) that other local officials have coined a verb for his philosophy: 'to Pringle-ize.'"