Georgeson’s annual report: “An Early Look at the 2025 Proxy Season” summarizes submission, withdrawal, and voting trends at Russell 3000 companies for key environmental, social, and governance proposals for the 2025 proxy season from July 1, 2024, through May 16, 2025.
Among the numerous key takeaways:
Reduced number of shareholder proposals—The number of shareholder proposals declined 15% season-over-season consisting of a 20% reduction in environmental proposals, 33% reduction in social proposals, 5% reduction in governance proposals, and 14% increase in anti-ESG proposals. Of the 311 of 852 proposals voted as of May 16, 35 of 37 that passed were governance-related proposals.
Increased number of no-action requests and grants of relief—Of 353 no-action requests this season to date, 197 have been granted (56%), 86 rejected (24%), and 70 withdrawn (20%). This compares to 266 last season, of which 53% were granted, 24% rejected, and 23% withdrawn. No-action requests relating to governance-related proposals corresponded with the highest rate of no-action relief, as shown here:
Top 10 proponents represent increasing % of total—John Chevedden continued his long-time record as the most prolific proponent, submitting 258 of the total 852 proposals (30%), with As You Sow trailing in second at 68 proposals, or 8% of the total. The top 10 proponents, including Chevedden, filed 67% of the proposals, compared to 61% in 2024.
Proxy advisor impacts—Illustratively, average support for environmental proposals increased from 17% to 31% when both ISS and Glass Lewis supported the proposal and declined to 12% when both proxy advisors recommended against.
Although each of the proxy advisors supported 28% of environmental proposals voted, they did not vote in lockstep; their voting recommendations were split on eight environmental proposals. Further, ISS’s level of support represented a huge reduction from 2024’s 61% support, whereas Glass Lewis’s level of support represented a modest increase season-over-season (28% this season compared to 25% last season).