Johnson County voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to retain Judge Kathleen L. Sloan on the Kansas District Court for the 10th Judicial District, Division 10.

Sloan, an Overland Park resident, has served on the district court bench since Governor Kathleen Sebelius appointed her in September 2004, according to a Kansas Judicial Branch news release.

Her current four-year term ends in 2027, according to the Johnson County Election Office. The race is nonpartisan and Sloan is certified for the ballot. In a retention election, voters answer "yes" or "no" on whether to keep a sitting judge. There is no opposing candidate.

Candidate information

  • Office sought: Kansas District Court Judge, District 10, Division 10
  • Residence: Overland Park, Kansas
  • Education: Bachelor's degree from George Washington University (1983); juris doctor from the University of Kansas School of Law (1991)

Experience and public service

Before joining the bench, Sloan worked as a legislative assistant in the office of U.S. Rep. Larry Winn from 1978 to 1984. She then served as staff director in the office of U.S. Rep. Jan Meyers from 1985 to 1987, according to the Kansas Judicial Branch.

She was a law clerk in the 10th Judicial District from 1988 to 1991, then practiced law privately from 1991 to 1997. She served as a district court trustee in Johnson County from 1997 until her 2004 appointment to the bench.

In March 2019, Sloan was appointed to sit with the Kansas Supreme Court to hear oral arguments and participate in deliberations and decision drafting for a case on the court's docket.

Sloan is a past president of the Johnson County Bar Foundation. She has served as a director of Johnson County CASA, Shawnee Mission Medical Center Foundation and Johnson County Community College Foundation. She also served on the Johnson County Advisory Committee to the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault.

Bar association evaluations

In the 2022 Johnson County Bar Association judicial evaluation survey, 78% of responding attorneys said Sloan should be retained. That survey drew 51 responses. In the 2018 survey, 83% of 82 responding attorneys recommended retention.

Voters will be asked whether to retain Sloan on the Nov. 3 ballot. Polling locations and ballot information are available through the Johnson County Election Office.