the.com/appointee
Someone who got the job by knowing a person instead of beating a crowd.
means A person who is placed in a position by someone else's decision or selection, rather than through election or open competition.
from From 'appoint,' which traces back through French 'apointer' to Latin 'ad' (to) plus 'punctum' (a point) — originally meaning to arrange something precisely, to settle a matter to a specific point. The sense narrowed over time to naming someone for a role, and 'appointee' emerged as the natural label for the person on the receiving end of that decision — the one pointed to, rather than the one who won a vote.
- vs elected
- owes loyalty upward, not to voters
- etymology
- from appoint, to fix or designate, 14th century
- risk
- serves at the pleasure of whoever picked them
- classic example
- cabinet secretaries, ambassadors, judges in many systems