- Hague defeated three candidates for labor minister.
- Oxford says it has won a majority in the final round of voting.
- Pakistan’s Imran Khan also applied for the post in September.
LONDON: William Hague, the former leader of the Conservative Party and England’s foreign secretary, was on Wednesday chosen as the next chancellor of Oxford University, a largely ceremonial role dating back centuries.
Haig was named as the successor to Chris Patton, the last British governor of Hong Kong and a former senior Conservative politician, in what is seen as one of the greatest positions in higher education.
He defeated former Labor Minister Peter Mandelson and three other candidates.
The university said Hague “won a majority in the last round of voting for the post” and would be the 160th chancellor on record in the university’s history, a role dating back at least 800 years.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan also applied for the position of chancellor of the prestigious university in September despite being jailed for corruption and other cases of incitement to violence during the May 9 protests last year.
The seat fell vacant following the resignation of 80-year-old Lord Patton, who stepped down after 21 years of service.
However, in October, the former prime minister’s bid was rejected, his adviser said.
Oxford had released a shortlist of 38 candidates who were participating in the first round of voting, which did not include Imran’s name.
The list also included the names of former Prime Ministers of England, Sir Tony Blair and Boris Johnson, who were candidates to become the chancellor of the university.