K. Christopher Jayaram faces a nonpartisan retention vote for Kansas District Court judge in District 10, Division 12, on the Nov. 3, 2026, general election ballot. Voters will decide whether to retain Jayaram in the seat he has held since 2021.
Governor Laura Kelly appointed Jayaram to the Kansas Supreme Court on July 13 to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Chief Justice Marla Luckert, according to the governor's office. He was sworn in Aug. 3. The appointment was Kelly's fifth to the state's highest court. His current Supreme Court term runs through January 2029.
The retention question on the Nov. 3 ballot concerns his District Court position.
Candidate information
- Name: K. Christopher Jayaram
- Race: Kansas District Court Judge, District 10, Division 12 (retention)
- Party: Nonpartisan
- Residence: Lenexa, Kansas
- Education: Bachelor of arts in environmental science, University of Kansas, 1993; J.D., Lewis & Clark Law School, 1997
- Church: Saint Thomas the Apostle's Episcopal Church, Olathe, Kansas
- Community: Competitive youth soccer coach for Toca FC
Experience and public service
Before joining the bench, Jayaram spent more than two decades in private legal practice. He worked as an associate attorney at Smith, Freed, Heald & Chock from 1997 to 1999, according to Kansas Judicial Branch records. He then served as a partner at Horn Aylward & Bandy from 1999 to 2021, according to BallotReady. His practice areas included complex commercial and business litigation, product liability, health care provider liability and transportation-related issues, according to the governor's office.
Jayaram began his legal career with an internship at the Environmental Protection Agency in 1994 and a clerkship at the Oregon Department of Justice's Trial Division in 1996, according to his former law firm's biography. He served as associate editor of Environmental Law, the law review at Lewis and Clark College's Northwestern School of Law, from 1996 to 1997, according to Kansas Judicial Branch records.
He is admitted to the bar in Missouri, Kansas, Oregon and Washington, as well as the U.S. District Courts for the Western District of Missouri and the District of Kansas, according to his former law firm's biography.
On the bench, Jayaram's initial assignment was in Family Court. He handled divorce cases involving minor children, annulment requests, parentage determinations, protection from abuse and stalking cases, and third-party visitation claims, according to the governor's office. He later moved to the Civil Department to preside over civil disputes.
Jayaram served as a trustee of the Johnson County Bar Foundation from 2018 to 2024 and as its president in 2023, according to Kansas Judicial Branch records. He also serves as an instructor at the National Judicial College, according to the same records.
He is co-author of the Missouri chapter of the Product Liability Desk Reference and the Missouri chapter of the Tort Law Desk Reference, both fifty-state legal reference works published since 2000, according to his former law firm's biography.
The Overland Park Chronicle did not receive issue responses or endorsement information for this candidate. This profile is based on publicly available records. Voters can find more information through the Kansas Judicial Branch and the Johnson County Election Office.
