Member Guide

Governance & Voting Guide

What is DAO Governance?

SpiritDAO uses on-chain governance: all proposals and votes are recorded on the blockchain. This creates:

Requirements for Participation

To Vote on Proposals

Required:

Advocate is auto-delegated when it is minted, so your voting power is active immediately. There is no manual delegation step.

How to Check:

  1. Go to Governance page
  2. See "Voting Power" in top section
  3. It reflects your Advocate holdings automatically

To Create Proposals

Required:

Voting Power

What is Voting Power?

Delegate to Someone Else (Optional)

When: You trust someone to vote on your behalf

Steps:

  1. Go to Delegation page
  2. Enter delegate's address
  3. Click "Delegate"
  4. Sign transaction
  5. Delegate can now vote with your power

Important:

Check Your Delegation

  1. Go to Governance page
  2. See "Delegated To" field
  3. By default it is your own address (auto-delegated), meaning you vote with your own power

Understanding Proposals

Proposal Lifecycle

1. Pending (State 0)

2. Active (State 1)

3. Defeated/Failed (State 3)

4. Succeeded/Passed (State 4)

5. Queued (State 5)

6. Expired (State 6)

7. Executed (State 7)

8. Canceled (State 2)

Proposal Components

Title:

Description:

Forum Thread (Optional):

Voting Duration:

Actions (Advanced):

Viewing Proposals

Browse All Proposals

  1. Go to Vote or Governance page
  2. See list of all proposals
  3. Each card shows:
    • Title and excerpt
    • Current status
    • Vote counts (For/Against/Abstain)
    • Time remaining (if active)
    • Whether you voted

Filter Proposals

By Status:

How:

  1. Click filter buttons at top
  2. List updates automatically
  3. Shows count for each category

View Proposal Details

  1. Click on any proposal card
  2. See full page with:
    • Complete description
    • Voting breakdown
    • Vote history
    • Discussion link
    • Execution status

Voting on Proposals

Cast Your Vote

Requirements Check:

  1. Must hold Advocate (voting power is active automatically)
  2. Proposal must be Active (State 1)
  3. You haven't voted on this proposal yet

Steps:

  1. Go to Vote page or Governance page
  2. Find active proposal
  3. Click proposal to view details
  4. Click "Vote" button
  5. Choose your position:
    • For: Support the proposal
    • Against: Oppose the proposal
    • Abstain: Participate but neutral
  6. Add optional comment/reason
  7. Click "Cast Vote"
  8. Sign transaction
  9. Wait for confirmation
  10. Your vote is recorded

After Voting:

Vote Visibility

Vote Weight

Creating Proposals

Step 1: Prepare Your Proposal

Before Creating:

Proposal Quality:

Step 2: Navigate to Create Proposal

  1. Go to Governance page
  2. Click "Create Proposal" button
  3. Or go directly to /governance/executive

Step 3: Fill Proposal Form

Title:

Description:

Link to Forum Thread (Recommended):

  1. First create forum post
  2. Get discussion going
  3. Copy thread URL
  4. Paste in proposal form
  5. Helps voters see community sentiment

Token Gating (Optional):

Step 4: Review Requirements

Before submitting, system checks:

Step 5: Submit Proposal

  1. Review all information
  2. Click "Submit Proposal"
  3. Approve transaction (may have gas cost)
  4. Wait for confirmation (30-60 seconds)
  5. Proposal appears in listings

Note: Proposal creation is NOT sponsored/gasless

Step 6: Promote Your Proposal

After creating:

Advanced Governance Features

Proposal Thresholds

Quorum:

Approval:

Check Thresholds:

Voting Countdown

Timelock Period

Purpose:

Duration:

During Timelock:

Proposal Execution

Who Can Execute:

Execution Steps:

  1. Wait for timelock to expire
  2. Click "Execute Proposal"
  3. Sign transaction
  4. Proposal actions run
  5. Changes go live

What Executes:

Governance Best Practices

As a Voter

Do Your Research:

Vote on Everything:

Vote Before Deadline:

Explain Your Vote:

As a Proposal Creator

Build Consensus First:

Write Clearly:

Be Responsive:

Time It Right:

Accept Outcomes:

Governance Participation Tips

Voting Strategy

Read Everything:

Think Long-Term:

Check Financials:

Consider Unintended Consequences:

Delegation Strategy

By default you vote with your own power (Advocate is auto-delegated on mint). Delegating to someone else is optional.

When to Keep Voting Yourself:

When to Delegate to Someone Else:

Choosing a Delegate:

Monitor Your Delegate:

Common Scenarios

"My Vote Didn't Count"

Possible Causes:

Solutions:

"Proposal I Supported Failed"

What to Do:

"Can't Create Proposal"

Common Issues:

"Voting Period Too Short"

Reality:

Governance Analytics

Viewing Voting History

  1. Go to proposal details
  2. Scroll to "Votes" section
  3. See all votes cast
  4. Shows:
    • Voter address
    • Vote choice (For/Against/Abstain)
    • Voting power used
    • Timestamp

Checking Vote Distribution

Participation Rate

Emergency Situations

Malicious Proposals

If You See Malicious Proposal:

Examples of Malicious:

Governance Attacks

51% Attack:

Flash Loan Attack:

Defensive Measures:

Governance Improvement

Meta-Governance

Governance Experiments

Community Education

Governance is the heart of SpiritDAO. Participate actively to shape the community! 🗳️