How to Vote
Voting in Inverse Finance happens entirely on-chain through Governor Mills, the DAO's proposal execution environment. Every INV token equals one vote, and proposals that reach quorum are automatically executed without requiring any trusted intermediary. This guide walks you through the voting process, delegation options, and how to participate in governance discussions.
Before You Vote
To vote on any proposal, you must first delegate your voting power — either to yourself or to another address. Delegation is required even if you plan to vote directly, as it activates your voting power on-chain. The good news: delegation is free and only requires a wallet signature, not a gas-paying transaction.
Why delegate to yourself? If you want to vote directly on proposals, delegate to your own address to activate your voting power.
Why delegate to someone else? Voting on-chain requires paying Ethereum gas fees for each vote, which can be expensive during network congestion. Delegating to a trusted community member allows them to vote on your behalf at no gas cost to you. You can revoke or change your delegation at any time.
How to Delegate Your Voting Power
From either the Governance Portal or Delegates Directory, find the Your Current Voting Power box.
Here you will see your eligible xINV, voting power, and who you are delegating to. To change your delegation select Change INV Delegate.
Here you will be given the option to select from a list of delegates, or to self-delegate. Were you to choose a delegate, select their address here, then sign the message, and share the generated signature with them.
The signature message looks like this:
{
"sig": "0xad4268d4e493edadsa64186fba40a2cc60de936f5c22daebd45cec2646bc443a...",
"nonce": "0",
"expiry": 10000000000,
"chainId": 1,
"signer": "0xE0e8C1D73569806047234279a8e4C20276Fc2ds24"
}
Your delegate will register the signature on-chain, activating your voting power under their control. Your INV tokens remain in your wallet at all times — delegation only assigns voting rights, not custody.
Delegation is free. You only sign a cryptographic proof with your wallet — no gas fees required. Your delegate pays the gas to register your delegation on-chain.
Finding the Right Delegate
Active delegates can be found in the #delegates-pitch channel on Discord and maintain profiles on the Delegates Directory. Review their voting history, read their policy positions, and engage with them in their dedicated Discord channels to ensure their views align with yours.
Once a delegate accumulates 1,900 delegated votes, they gain the power to submit proposals on-chain. This threshold may be adjusted by governance in the future to account for INV supply changes.
Changing Your Delegation
Delegation is not permanent. You can redirect your votes to a different delegate or reclaim them to vote directly at any time. Simply follow the delegation process again with your new choice — the most recent delegation signature overrides all previous ones.
Important: While delegated, you cannot vote on proposals yourself unless you override as described above. Check your delegate's voting record regularly to ensure they continue to represent your interests.
How to Vote Directly
If you've delegated to yourself or want to override your delegate for a specific proposal, follow these steps:
1. Navigate to the Governance Portal connect your wallet.
2. Review Active Proposals to see proposals currently open for voting. Each proposal displays:
Title and summary
Link to the forum discussion
On-chain actions that will execute if passed
Current vote totals and time remaining
3. Read the Full Proposal. Understanding what will execute on-chain is critical — these are binding code changes, parameter updates, or fund transfers.
4. Cast Your Vote. Select For or Against and confirm the transaction in your wallet. You'll pay Ethereum gas fees to submit your vote on-chain.
5. Track Voting Progress. Your vote is recorded immediately and the proposal's vote totals update in real-time. Once the voting period ends (~3 days), proposals that meet the 15,500 INV quorum and receive majority support enter the mandatory queueing period after which they are automatically executed.
Voting power is calculated at the snapshot block. Your voting power is determined by your INV balance when the proposal was created, not when you cast your vote. Acquiring more INV after a proposal goes live will not increase your voting power for that specific proposal.
The Proposal Discussion Process
Before any proposal is submitted on-chain, the Inverse Finance community follows a social agreement to publish and discuss it for at least 24 hours. This happens in two places:
The Inverse Finance Forum
All major proposals begin as forum posts where community members provide feedback, raise concerns, and refine the proposal scope. Visit forum.inverse.finance to read ongoing discussions and contribute your perspective.
Discord
Real-time governance discussions happen in the #governance channel on Discord. Join the conversation to ask questions, debate proposals, and hear from working group members and delegates.
This 24-hour minimum ensures proposals are thoroughly vetted before moving to binding on-chain votes. Use this time to engage with the community and voice your support or concerns.
Becoming a Delegate
Any INV holder can become a delegate simply by stating their intentions in the Discord. Every active delegate as a dedicated channel on the Inverse Finance Discord server. Active delegates typically:
Share governance updates and voting rationales
Participate actively in forum discussions
Maintain transparent voting records
Engage with their delegators in dedicated Discord channel
Delegates gain voting power by accepting delegation from other xINV holders. This is registered once you submit their delegation signature on the Governance Portal.
Once you accumulate 1,900 delegated votes, you gain the power to submit proposals on-chain, making you a key contributor to the DAO's decision-making process.
Governance Resources
Gas fees too high? Delegation lets you participate in governance without paying gas for every vote. Find a delegate whose views align with yours and let them vote on your behalf — it's free and you can change delegates anytime.
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