Meaning

verb select by a vote for an office or membership

noun an exclusive group of people

adjective selected as the best

originBorrowed from Latin ēlēctus, past participle of ēligō (“to pick out, choose, elect”), from ē- (“out”) + legō (“to pick out, pick, gather, collect, etc.”); see legend. Cognate to eclectic, which is via Ancient Greek rather than Latin, hence prefix ἐκ (ek), rather than e- (from ex).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0