autoelegirse

To choose or elect oneself for a role without a proper vote or process — nearly always used critically, similar to autodesignarse, implying the 'election' wasn't legitimate.

• Se autoeligió representante sin consultar a nadie más. — He elected himself representative without consulting anyone else.
• No puedes autoelegirte ganador de tu propio concurso. — You can't elect yourself the winner of your own contest.
• El comité rechazó que alguien pudiera autoelegirse candidato. — The committee rejected the idea that someone could nominate themselves a candidate that way.

Uses the irregular elegir conjugation (elijo, elige) — se autoeligió, not *autoelegió.

Often confused with elegir.