"Chtěl být zvolen předsedou."
Translation:He wanted to be elected chairman.
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Looks plausible, but I had to look it up so I won't add it myself. Not sure if it isn't closer to "být zvolen jako předseda." We try to limit the number of possible translations by requiring to stay as close a possible.
It sounds more like ''he wanted to be elected while he had been a chairman'' but it should be accepted because it is initially what I wrote as a native
If it means "while being a chairman" then it is incompatible with the Czech original.
Well that makes no sense. Electing someone requires more than one person voting, so you can't be elected by a single person. Right?
Let's say that "he" wanted to be appointed to some committee or position by the chairman. What might that be?
Yes, all right.
"Byl zvolen předsedou" can mean he was selected by the chairman. Not elected, because there was no voting, the chairman decided himself to appoint this guy.
But then it would be better to use other verbs: "Byl vybrán (=chosen) předsedou" -- this almost certainly means the chairman chose him for a position.
And this one is the most ambiguous one: "Byl jmenován (=appointed) předsedou." -- either someone appointed him to be the chairman, or the chairman appointed him to be something. For the latter, it would be better to avoid the passive voice and simply say "Předseda ho jmenoval..."
Ok, guys, thanks for the comments. Your variant "he was selected by the chairman" is the closest to what I was trying to say (I'm not a native English speaker). And as for "Electing someone requires more than one person voting"...laughs is East Slavic
A certain Vladimir might bend the rules :) And a certain East Slavic Alexander L. probably even more,.