Can, given time, and elected (3)
I believe the answer is:
tin
'can' is the definition.
('tin' can be a synonym of 'can')
'time and elected' is the wordplay.
'time' becomes 't'.
'and' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'elected' becomes 'in'.
't'+'in'='TIN'
'given' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for tin that I've seen before include "Ready" , "Metal in Argentina" , "Silvery white metal" , "Metal element" , "Light metal" .)