Leopoldo González-Echenique has been appointed as the new president of Spanish public-service broadcaster TVE.
The broadcaster had been without a permanent president since last July, which had hindered its ability to do sports rights deals, as well as other business.
The appointment comes at a time when TVE is under pressure to reduce spending on sports coverage and other programming.
González-Echenique is a lawyer who served in the previous administration of Spain’s Popular Party, which is now in government. He received 194 of the 279 votes cast by Spanish members of parliament. His only opponent, Teresa Aranguren, picked up seven votes. The remaining ballots were left blank and the opposition Socialist Party refused to put forward a candidate, saying earlier this month that it did “not want to take part in this farce.”
In the absence of a president, the members of TVE’s board had been rotating the presidency on a monthly basis.