Crossword Genius

State itself rejected after leader rejected (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

etat

'rejected' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I can't judge whether this works.

'state itself rejected after leader' is the wordplay.
'itself' becomes 'se'.
'rejected' is a deletion indicator.
'after' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'leader' becomes 'e' (I've seen this in other clues).
'state' with 'se' taken out is 'tat'.
'tat' after 'e' is 'ETAT'.

(Another definition for etat that I've seen is " Rank".)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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