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In Article 1, Section 2, why are voters called 'Electors'? Article 2, Section 1 refers to Electoral College members, so why is the same term used for House representative voters? This initially confused me. I want to understand the Constitution as best as I can, could somebody explain this section to me? I also found the Electoral College confusing - when those members 'pledge their vote', does that mean pledging their vote to the majority vote, or to a particular party?
The Constitution uses "Electors" simply to describe persons voting for an office. So we have "Electors" in general elections who we now call voters and "Electors" who are members of the Electoral College. Had they listened to me in 1787, they would have used different terms.
"Pledge their vote" does not appear in the Constitution. The Constitution leaves electors free to vote for whom they please. Some states have passed laws requiring electors to vote for the candidate they had pledged to support. The Supreme Court has said these laws are constitutional, but not mandatory.
