Judge, Arapahoe County Court

Cheryl Rowles-Stokes is the sitting Arapahoe County Court judge, standing for a retention vote on the November 3, 2026 ballot¹. She was appointed in January 2012 after serving as a chief deputy district attorney².

• Arapahoe County Court judge since January 4, 2012²
• Chief Deputy District Attorney, 18th Judicial District; earlier Vice President of Human Resources at High-Speed Access Corp. and Director of Human Resources and Legal at Rifkin & Associates²
• Colorado Christian University (human resources management); Jones International University (master's, business communications); University of Denver Sturm College of Law²
• Appointed on January 4, 2012; the evaluation page does not name the appointing governor². This is a retention election: voters decide yes or no on keeping the sitting judge, and no opponent is on the ballot¹.
• Bar poll: Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation, 2026 evaluation: Recommendation: Meets Performance Standards. "The Eighteenth Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance agrees by a vote of 8-0, with one member absent and one vacancy on the Commission, that Judge Cheryl Rowles-Stokes MEETS PERFORMANCE STANDARDS." This is an official state commission evaluation of the judge's performance, not an endorsement².