# \[DAO:6a5e8fc\] \[CLARIFICATION\] Should DAO proposals have a pre-defined 'Abstain' voting option? **URL:** \ **Category:** Governance\ **Created:** [September 12, 2023, 3:06pm UTC](https://forum.decentraland.org/t/dao-6a5e8fc-clarification-should-dao-proposals-have-a-pre-defined-abstain-voting-option/20586 "2023-09-12T15:06:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dao](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.decentraland.org/dao/32/386_2.png) [@dao](https://forum.decentraland.org/u/dao)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2023, 3:06pm UTC](https://forum.decentraland.org/t/dao-6a5e8fc-clarification-should-dao-proposals-have-a-pre-defined-abstain-voting-option/20586/1 "2023-09-12T15:06:24Z")
> by 0x511a22cdd2c4ee8357bb02df2578037ffe8a4d8d (ginoct) ## Linked Draft Proposal [Should DAO proposals have a pre-defined ‘Abstain’ voting option?](https://governance.decentraland.org/proposal/?id=2d146330-9e70-11ed-868f-0d503a0e5b7e) ## Summary This proposal seeks to clarify a contradiction present in the enacted Governance proposal that I authored. In that proposal, in two different sections, there are contradicting specifications of how the Abstain votes affect the outcome of a proposal. ## Abstract In the [enacted Governance proposal](https://governance.decentraland.org/proposal/?id=4ceeb900-ac83-11ed-ac8c-716656805a96) there are two definitions of how the Abstain votes behave when calculating the outcome of a proposal: In the Specification section, under the subtitle Implementation, I state: “The abstain option will be counted separately from the “for” and “against” votes, and will not affect the outcome of the vote.” However, in the Implementation Pathway section I state: “If the ‘Abstain’ option accumulates more VP than the Yes/No option, the proposal will be considered ‘Rejected’ by the community.” This mistake is simply a result of copying and pasting text from different versions of the drafts I used to elaborate the proposal. **The definition that should prevail is the one present in the Specification section: “The abstain option will be counted separately from the “for” and “against” votes, and will not affect the outcome of the vote.”** This is how it currently works and it’s how the Governance Squad implemented the feature in our Governance dApp and Snapshot strategy. Here’s the [Github issue](https://github.com/decentraland/governance/issues/808) we used to track the development, where the task is specified. ## Motivation Clarify a contradiction regarding how Abstain votes should be calculated and how they impact the outcome of a proposal in the previously published, voted, passed, and enacted [Governance proposal](https://governance.decentraland.org/proposal/?id=4ceeb900-ac83-11ed-ac8c-716656805a96) regarding this topic. ## Specification This is currently implemented as defined: Adding an abstain predefined option to the DAO’s voting system (Similar to how the Invalid Question/Options currently work for Polls), would allow members to indicate that they do not wish to vote either for or against a proposal. This option would be available alongside the existing options of “Yes” and “No”. This option will be added only for proposals with Yes/No options (Not applicable to Pre-proposal Polls) ### Implementation - The abstain option will be added to the DAO’s Snapshot space and the Governance dApp and will be available to all members in Yes/No proposals (POIs, Catalyst Node, Name Ban, Grant Request, Linked Wearables Registry, Draft Proposal, and Governance Proposal). - The abstain option will be counted separately from the “for” and “against” votes, and will not affect the outcome of the vote. - A summary of the abstain votes will be included in the results of the vote, along with the total number of “for,” “against,” and abstain votes. ## Impacts The impact of this proposal is to clarify a previous mistake and have a strong Governance model where the mechanisms are crisply defined and validated by the community. ## Implementation Pathways The feature is currently implemented as working as defined in the **Specification** section of this proposal. ## Conclusion ### Benefits - Allows members to express a neutral position on a proposal, rather than feeling forced to take a stance. - Provides a more accurate representation of member opinions, as it allows those who are unsure or neutral to make their views known. - Increases the legitimacy of the voting process and its engagement levels, as it allows all members to fully participate without feeling pressure to take a position they may not fully agree with. **[Vote on this proposal on the Decentraland DAO](https://governance.decentraland.org/proposal/?id=ea45aa20-517d-11ee-a817-7dc33a6da5df)** **[View this proposal on Snapshot](https://snapshot.org/#/snapshot.dcl.eth/proposal/0x1abb2e2d2eeaede8698fb05b51418ca566feb52e8e8b621e3a5515e966a5e8fc)** ---
**Author:** ![ginoct](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.decentraland.org/ginoct/32/10750_2.png) [@ginoct](https://forum.decentraland.org/u/ginoct)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2023, 3:08pm UTC](https://forum.decentraland.org/t/dao-6a5e8fc-clarification-should-dao-proposals-have-a-pre-defined-abstain-voting-option/20586/2 "2023-09-12T15:08:52Z")
Thanks @web3nit for noticing the contradiction and alerting me about this! ---
**Author:** ![web3nit](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.decentraland.org/web3nit/32/27357_2.png) [@web3nit](https://forum.decentraland.org/u/web3nit)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2023, 4:19pm UTC](https://forum.decentraland.org/t/dao-6a5e8fc-clarification-should-dao-proposals-have-a-pre-defined-abstain-voting-option/20586/3 "2023-09-14T16:19:29Z")
Thank you Gino for swift feedback. 🤝 ---
**Author:** ![dao](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.decentraland.org/dao/32/386_2.png) [@dao](https://forum.decentraland.org/u/dao)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2023, 3:06pm UTC](https://forum.decentraland.org/t/dao-6a5e8fc-clarification-should-dao-proposals-have-a-pre-defined-abstain-voting-option/20586/4 "2023-09-26T15:06:00Z")
[CLARIFICATION] Should DAO proposals have a pre-defined ‘Abstain’ voting option? This proposal is now in status: PASSED. Voting Results: - Yes 98% 10,621,537 VP (115 votes) - No 1% 504 VP (4 votes) - Abstain 1% 193,413 VP (9 votes) ---
**Author:** ![dao](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.decentraland.org/dao/32/386_2.png) [@dao](https://forum.decentraland.org/u/dao)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 4:27am UTC](https://forum.decentraland.org/t/dao-6a5e8fc-clarification-should-dao-proposals-have-a-pre-defined-abstain-voting-option/20586/5 "2023-10-18T04:27:35Z")
[CLARIFICATION] Should DAO proposals have a pre-defined ‘Abstain’ voting option? This proposal has been ENACTED by a DAO Committee Member (0xbef99f5f55cf7cdb3a70998c57061b7e1386a9b0)