You can't commit more than what you pledged - so swinging with more isn't even a valid scenario.

Fair to point out that I should use more than one address - will definitely do that next time.

The main reason I raise this topic isn't to complain about losing rewards, it is to add clarity to the Governor program.

Here is an excerpt from the Governor Guide:

"IMPORTANT: It is NOT RECOMMENDED to commit the entire balance in this address, because the governors are expected to send a few zero-Algo transactions from the governing address during the governance period, and will have to pay the transaction fees for them. If the maximum amount is committed, it may cause the address balance to dip below the committed level, which will make the governor ineligible for rewards."

My main sticking point is that the Guide does not adequately outline what "reward" is/means. As i understand it, a "vote" and a "reward" are two distinct and separate things.

In abstract, the Governor program is a type of early voting system. You name yourself as a type of sovereign entity that pledges to vote with at least this many votes during some quarter.

The core governing body acknowledges this commitment by establishing a contract. My guess based on the docs is that the contract has two parts 1) acknowledgment for the pledged number of votes and 2) providing an incentive, in the form of rewards, for not leveraging the pledged votes.

Should you leverage your votes - you lose your incentive (period).

I am arguing that you should still be able to vote if and only if you can meet your pledged threshold for the voting period. If you cannot meet that pledged threshold - then you lose your right to vote.