Conviction Voting
A governance method where support accumulates the longer you hold a position, funding proposals continuously as conviction builds — designed for ongoing treasury allocation without snapshot-vote gaming.
Support That Builds Over Time
Conviction voting is a governance mechanism where your support for a proposal grows stronger the longer you keep backing it, rather than being a single yes/no snapshot. You stake your voting power on proposals you favour, and 'conviction' accumulates over time the longer your support stays in place. When a proposal's accumulated conviction crosses a threshold (which is higher for proposals requesting more funds), it passes and is funded. There is no fixed voting day — proposals pass continuously whenever enough sustained support builds up behind them.
Why Continuous, Time-Weighted Voting
It was designed to fix problems with traditional snapshot voting, where a proposal is decided by whoever shows up (or whales who swing in) at a single moment. By rewarding sustained conviction, it favours proposals with durable, genuine support over ones that win a momentary popularity spike or a last-minute whale vote. It also lets a community allocate an ongoing treasury smoothly — proposals flow through as support matures — rather than through disruptive all-or-nothing voting events. It is used by DAOs (notably in the Aragon/1Hive ecosystem) for continuous funding decisions.
- Conviction (support strength) accumulates the longer you back a proposal
- A proposal passes when its conviction crosses a threshold (higher for larger asks)
- There is no single voting day — proposals pass continuously as support matures
- Designed to reward durable support and enable smooth ongoing treasury allocation
Key Takeaways
- Support strengthens over time rather than being a one-moment snapshot
- Proposals pass when sustained conviction crosses a funding-scaled threshold
- It suits continuous treasury funding and resists momentary vote swings
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References & further reading
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