Companies see strong support for executive pay programs through June 30, 2026
After a strong 2025, shareholder support for executive pay programs is even higher so far in 2026.
Average support increased from just over 90% at this time last year to 91.8% as of June 30, 2026. The failure rate went down from 1.4% at this time last year to less than 1% this year. And proxy advisor Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) recommended against a lower percentage of proposals.
The trend toward higher levels of support might continue into the 2027 proxy season but the waning influence of proxy advisors may result in more uncertainty. It’s critical that companies stay up to date on changing investor voting policies and patterns and proactively engage with them to understand their priorities and concerns.
Separately, if proposed amendments to the SEC’s reporting framework take effect, about 80% of companies would no longer have to hold a say-on-pay vote and would be permitted to significantly reduce their executive pay disclosures. For more information, see “SEC’s proposed overhaul of public company filer statuses includes reduced executive pay disclosure for all new and most current filers.”
2026 (through June 30) vs. 2025 stats
All indicators show strong support from investors and proxy advisors as of June 30:
1. Failure rates. Failure rates are lower than this time last year and for all of last year for both all-size companies and S&P 500 companies:
● For all-size companies, 0.9% (24) received less than 50% support, compared to 1.4% (37) as of this time last year, and 1.5% (49) for all of last year.
● For S&P 500 companies, 1.1% (5) received less than 50% support, compared to 1.2% (5) as of this time last year, and 1.5% (7) for all of last year.
2. Average support levels. Support at all-size companies is averaging 91.8% (up slightly from 90.3% this time last year and 90.1% for all of last year). Support at S&P 500 companies is averaging 90.4% (up from 89.5% this time last year and for all of last year).
3. Support of at least 90%. 75.9% of all-size companies received at least 90% support (up from 71.4% this time last year, and 70.3% for all of last year); 74.6% of S&P 500 companies received at least 90% support (up from 69.0% this time last year, and 69.6% for all of last year).
4. ISS against recommendations and impact on failure rates. ISS has recommended shareholders vote against say-on-pay proposals at all-size companies at a rate of 12.0% (down from 12.3% as of this time last year, and 13.1% for all of last year) and 8.4% at S&P 500 companies (down from 9.3% as of this time last year, and 9.8% for all of last year).
Failures where ISS issued an “against” recommendation are lower at all-size companies (6.8% vs. 10.2% as of this time last year, and 10.3% for all of last year) and higher for S&P 500 companies (13.5% vs. 12.5% as of this time last year, and 14.9% for all of last year).
Reasons for “no” votes continue to include significant one-time or special awards, pay-for-performance disconnects, failure to engage with shareholders after a year of low support, and categorizing executive terminations as retirements but paying severance.
is a Senior Legal Consultant in Mercer's Law & Regulatory Group (L&R) based in Washington DC. She provides expert analyses on a variety of US and Canadian compliance and policy matters, and advises clients on securities and corporate governance issues affecting executive pay in North America.
is a Partner and Senior Legal Consultant in Mercer's Law & Regulatory Group (L&R) based in New York. She specializes in technical legal and regulatory issues affecting executive compensation and corporate governance. She focuses on SEC disclosure, tax, employment and change in control agreements, equity programs, and employee benefit issues that arise in the context of corporate transactions and initial public offerings.
is the Manager of Executive Rewards Data and Research supporting the U.S./Canada executive compensation practice. He oversees the research and publication of several executive compensation-related studies produced by the practice throughout the year; and works with consultants to deliver tailored research solutions to their clients. Carlo has extensive experience analyzing executive compensation programs, both as a consultant and a corporate governance research analyst.