Mike Hoelscher, Seth Rundle win in judicial races

Shortly after 9:30 Tuesday night, Mike Hoelscher admitted he was cautiously optimistic.

And 30 minutes later, he could breathe even easier, and express his gratitude. Sedgwick County election results showed he received 62 percent of the votes in the District Judge Division 19 race against Diane Sherwood, who had 37 percent.

“I am grateful,” he said. “I have tried to be a decent, kind attorney. I want to be that way as a judge.”

Hoelscher is assured of that after his primary win because there is no Democratic candidate in the general election.

The seat was left open by Judge Mark Vining, who is retiring.

Hoeschler’s bid comes after 12 years of practicing law locally, both in the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office and as an assistant attorney for the city of Wichita.

Sherwood, a Wichita attorney, started a dispute resolution practice in 1998.

The District Judge Division 5 race was closer, but the unofficial vote totals showed Seth Rundle with 52 percent of the vote, compared to Linda Kirby’s 47 percent.

“I had a lot of dedicated volunteers and grassroots help and support,” Rundle said.

The top vote-getter in Division 5 will face Gregory Waller, one of the district’s long-serving judges, in November’s general election.

Kirby, a local attorney with 26 years of experience, lost a bid for Sedgwick County District Judge Phil Journey’s seat in 2012.

Rundle is a Sedgwick County public defender and an Air Force judge advocate, and he has 10 years combined experience in civilian and military law.

This story was originally published August 5, 2014 at 10:06 PM with the headline "Mike Hoelscher, Seth Rundle win in judicial races."