Lido DAO employs mature governance features aimed at enhancing security and accountability.
Two-phase voting
Lido DAO’s on-chain voting uses a two‑phase process to prevent last‑minute governance actions. The first phase allows votes for and against, while the second phase accepts only against votes, adding crucial time for voters to counter malicious proposals.
The system is intentionally conservative, making it easier to block proposals than pass them, enhancing security. Learn more
Delegation
LDO holders can delegate their voting power on both off - and on-chain voting platforms.
For Snapshot voting, delegation is managed using the platform's built-in mechanisms. For Aragon voting, Lido’s Delegation framework allows LDO holders to assign their voting power to another address, enabling delegates to vote on their behalf. LDO tokens remain fully under the tokenholder’s control to be transferred, sold, or used in any way.
Delegated votes are counted alongside direct votes and can be tracked on the voting platform. The tokenholder can override the delegate’s decision or revoke delegation rights at any time. Learn more.
Dual Governance
On-chain actions targeting Lido protocol features enter Dual Governance — a dynamic timelock that allows stETH holders to extend execution delay based on the opposition.
Each proposal faces a minimum 3‑day delay; if no objections arise, it is scheduled and becomes executable after 24 hours.
With over 1% of total stETH opposing, motions are blocked for 5–45 days; with over 10%, governance remains paused until the opposing stakers exit. Learn more.
Easy Tracks (Optimistic Governance)
The Easy Track is an optimistic governance tool for routine DAO operations used to reduce voter fatigue.
Only authorized multisig addresses can initiate Easy Track motions that pass automatically after 72 hours unless 0.5% of the total LDO supply objects.
A notable case of optimistic governance implementation is STONKS, a tool operated by the Treasury Management Committee (TMC) to maintain transparent and secure fund allocation. Swap orders are executed through CoW Protocol with MEV protection and price guarantees, and proceeds return directly to the DAO treasury.
Other common Easy Track motions include updating node operator parameters, adjusting staking limits, or funding grants within predefined budgets.
How to Engage
Propose: Submit ideas on the Research Forum and contribute expertise by engaging in discussions. Participate in GOOSE cycles to help shape the DAO's direction.
Vote or Delegate: LDO holders vote on proposals via Snapshot (off-chain) and Aragon (on-chain). Voting power can be delegated to trusted representatives while retaining full control; delegation can be overridden or revoked at any time.
Review: Monitor protocol state via Dune dashboards, review decentralization progress on the Scorecard, attend Tokenholder Update Calls for the latest news from Lido Labs, read published reports, and subscribe to the real‑time governance notification bot.
Governance checks and balances
An incentive misalignment exists between LDO and stETH holders, posing a risk that LDO governance power could be misused to substantively alter the protocol or introduce upgrades that harm stakers.
This risk is heightened by EIP-7002, which enables the DAO to use the Lido withdrawal credentials contract to trigger validator exits without Node Operator consent—making protocol-level attacks more feasible if governance is captured. Yet, a mass exit of validators would take a very long time (weeks to months), and it would give the DAO time to respond via further governance action.
Mitigation Measures:
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Two-phase voting: On-chain voting is divided into two parts, with the second being the objection phase that concludes every vote. It allows LDO holders to object to unexpected last‑minute decisions, effectively creating a ‘better timelock’ mechanism.
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Dual Governance: Introduces a "foot voting" mechanism for stETH holders. It allows them to:
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Delay execution: Extend the default 3-day timelock based on the level of opposition.
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Exit: Exit the protocol before governance decisions take effect.
For more details, read the Lido Dual Governance stETH holder Guide.