IMHO it should be based on the comments on a candidate. For instance, someone doing fabulous craftsmanship in a remote shire, whose Laurel says they're ready, who gets six strong positive comments and a whole raft of "Who?" is quite possibly a good candidate for the order, possibly better than someone who is only adequate but lives in a central area and is popular.

On the other hand, a fighter who is not even recognized by the other fighters in the kingdom may not be experienced enough to become part of the kingdom fighters' order.

So yeah, the Crown's decisions should be based on a synthesis of the comments and the yes/no votes.