Johnson County District Court Judge Thomas Kelly Ryan faces a retention vote on the Nov. 3, 2026, Kansas general election ballot. Voters will decide whether to retain Ryan in the District 10, Division 17 seat he has held since 2008.
Retention elections are nonpartisan yes-or-no votes. Ryan is certified for the ballot, according to BallotReady election data.
Governor Kathleen Sebelius appointed Ryan to the district court on Sept. 24, 2008, according to the Johnson County District Court. He presides over Division 17 at the Johnson County Courthouse.
Candidate information
- Full name: Thomas Kelly Ryan
- Born: 1960, Kansas City, Missouri
- Residence: Shawnee, Kansas
- Education: Bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communications, Creighton University, 1981; juris doctor, Washburn University School of Law, 1985
- Appointed to bench: Sept. 24, 2008, by Governor Kathleen Sebelius
Experience and public service
Ryan grew up in Johnson County, according to the Johnson County Judicial Nominating Commission. He graduated from Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, Missouri, according to a Kansas Courts news release.
After law school, he served briefly as an assistant county attorney in Lyon County in 1985, then as an assistant district attorney in Johnson County from 1985 to 1988, according to the Johnson County District Court. He spent 20 years in private practice at Gates, Biles, Shields & Ryan, handling civil litigation with a significant focus on family law, according to the Judicial Nominating Commission.
Ryan also served as city prosecutor for Edgerton from 1993 to 2005 and as Edgerton's municipal court judge from 2007 to 2008. He briefly served as assistant city prosecutor for Fairway in 2008 before his appointment to the district court.
On the bench, Ryan was first assigned to the Family Court, hearing divorce, paternity and child support cases. He transferred to the Criminal Department in July 2013 and returned to Family Court in February 2026, according to the Judicial Nominating Commission.
The Kansas Supreme Court appointed Ryan chief judge of the 10th Judicial District for a term beginning Jan. 1, 2018. He succeeded Judge Kevin Moriarty, according to a Kansas Courts news release. In September 2018, Ryan sat with the Kansas Supreme Court to hear oral arguments and participate in deliberations for one case.
Ryan served as president of the Johnson County Bar Association in 2018 and is past president of the Kansas District Judges Association. He received the Outstanding Service Award from the Kansas Bar Association in June 2009.
He has chaired the Johnson County Criminal Justice Advisory Council since 2023, having served on the council since 2014. Ryan also serves on the Commission on Judicial Conduct, the Pattern Instructions for Kansas committee and the Johnson County Veterans Treatment Court. He served as chair of the Judicial Council Adoption Law Advisory Committee, which reviewed and recommended legislative changes to Kansas adoption laws.
Ryan was elected to the Johnson County Judicial Nominating Commission in 2022 and re-elected in 2026. He serves on the board of directors for Court Appointed Special Advocates of Johnson and Wyandotte Counties.
On the issues
No issue responses or policy statements from Ryan were publicly available for this retention election.
This profile was compiled from public court records and official Kansas judicial sources. No candidate questionnaire responses were available at the time of publication.
