JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Circuit Court Judge Joseph Dandurand has been appointed to the Missouri Court of Appeals.

Governor Matt Blunt picked Dandurand from among three finalists nominated to replace Western District appellate judge Robert Ulrich.

Dandurand currently is the presiding judge in the 17th Judicial Circuit, which includes Cass and Johnson counties. He is a Democrat who first was elected as judge in 1986 and has been re-elected several times since then.

Under Missouri's court plan, a special commission recommends three finalists to the governor when vacancies occur on appeals courts.

The other two finalists were Kansas City area attorneys Alok Ahuja and Cindy Reams Martin.

Ulrich resigned in August to become a law professor in Virginia.