Vanguard Investor Choice Participation Grows More Than Sixfold
Vanguard Investor Choice program participation increased more than sixfold in 2026, surpassing 507,000 investors. The program allows individual investors to direct proxy votes on shareholder matters for their holdings.
VALLEY FORGE, Pa. – The number of participants in Vanguard Investor Choice, the company's program allowing investors to direct proxy votes, grew more than sixfold in 2026, reaching over 507,000 investors. Assets under this program also saw substantial growth, reaching $151 billion.
According to Vanguard's 2026 "How Investors Vote" report, participation surged from 82,000 investors in 2025. Launched in 2023, Investor Choice enables investors to select from various proxy voting policies on issues like director elections and executive compensation. The program has also expanded to include approximately 80 retirement plan sponsors, representing over one million participants.
The report indicated a diversity in voting policy selections among participating investors, with no single policy accounting for more than 38% of choices. Younger investors showed a greater preference for Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) aligned policies, while older investors were more inclined to select policies aligned with company boards.
Vanguard plans to extend the Investor Choice program to all of its U.S. equity index funds in 2027, aiming to broaden participation. Investors have already pre-selected policies for an additional $120 billion in assets for funds expected to join the program next year.