Judge, 17th Judicial District Court (Adams and Broomfield Counties)

Kelley R. Southerland is the sitting 17th Judicial District Court judge, standing for a retention vote on the November 3, 2026 ballot¹. She was appointed in January 2023 after serving as a magistrate since 2017².

• District Court judge in the 17th Judicial District since January 10, 2023; has rotated through juvenile and domestic relations dockets²
• Magistrate in the 17th Judicial District beginning in 2017; 15 years as an attorney serving children and families²
• Wesleyan College (Georgia); University of Denver Sturm College of Law; Iliff School of Theology²
• Appointed district court judge in the 17th Judicial District effective January 10, 2023; 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 Seventeenth Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance agrees by a vote of 8-0 with two commissioners absent, that Judge Kelley R. Southerland MEETS PERFORMANCE STANDARDS." This is an official state commission evaluation of the judge's performance, not an endorsement². The commission's written finding also says: "the timeliness of written orders remains a systemic challenge due to heavy caseloads and limited judicial resources."²