A quiet proxy season — just as the scaffolding under the vote shifts
The 2026 season was calm on the surface: through mid-May only 9.3% of directors drew under 90% support. The structural story is louder. A US executive order has put the two big proxy advisers, ISS and Glass Lewis, in its sights, and Glass Lewis says it will drop single-benchmark recommendations from 2027 in favour of client-customised voting. A default many smaller owners relied on is becoming less central.
The case: owners voting their own policy, not a one-size template, is more accountable and harder to caricature as a cartel. The counter-case: without a credible default, under-resourced funds drift toward management, and politicising the advisers chills legitimate engagement.
What to watch: whether large owners build real in-house voting capacity, or quietly vote with management.
Sources: Harvard CorpGov, Paul Weiss.
UAO Fiduciary — Edition 001. We report the debate; you make the call. This briefing is not legal, investment, or voting advice.