Gov. Sam Brownback is defending the new process for selecting Kansas Court of Appeals judges, saying it involves more people and encourages the best candidates to apply.

Brownback says Tuesday that the old system that put the power to select judges in the hands of a nominating commission left elected officials with little involvement, except when the governor made the final selection. He says his nomination of Caleb Stegall to fill an opening on the Court of Appeals will involve the executive branch and the Kansas Senate, increasing the amount of scrutiny that nominees must face.

Kansas changed the process for selecting appeals court judges earlier this year, moving to a federal model where the governor accepts applicants and advances a nominee for Senate confirmation.