Element that could be unseemliest, not established (8)
I believe the answer is:
selenium
'element' is the definition.
(I know that selenium is a type of element)
'could be unseemliest not established' is the wordplay.
'could be' is an anagram indicator.
'not' is a deletion indicator.
'established' becomes 'est' (abbreviation).
'unseemliest' with 'est' taken out is 'unseemli'.
'unseemli' anagrammed gives 'SELENIUM'.
'that' is the link.
(Another definition for selenium that I've seen is " Semiconducting element, symbol Se".)
I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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