The 2025 proxy season saw significant developments with respect to proposals calling on companies to disclose information about their political contribution activity and lobbying activity, including an increase in support for political contribution proposals. That stronger support, particularly against the backdrop of reduced support for socially-oriented shareholder proposals, may lead to more such proposals filed in the 2026 proxy season, which is now underway.

However, there have been several developments over the past year that provide companies with important new tools for addressing these proposals, including guidance from the staff of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance (the “Staff”) and several notable no-action decisions during the 2025 proxy season that reflect the Staff’s most recent thinking regarding political law proposals and grounds for exemptions more generally.

These developments are informing the approaches shareholders are taking for bringing proposals on political law topics in the 2026 season and the paths companies are following in evaluating their response to these proposals. In this alert, we provide an overview of the shareholder proposal process, and discuss developments from 2025 and their implications for the 2026 season. 

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Photo of Kerry Burke Kerry Burke

Kerry Shannon Burke has been helping public and private companies structure and execute capital markets and finance transactions and navigate the pitfalls of public company reporting and governance for over 25 years. Kerry regularly represents issuers, ranging from development stage ventures to large…

Kerry Shannon Burke has been helping public and private companies structure and execute capital markets and finance transactions and navigate the pitfalls of public company reporting and governance for over 25 years. Kerry regularly represents issuers, ranging from development stage ventures to large public companies, as well as underwriters and other institutional investors, with private and public debt and equity financings. She also has assisted public and private companies in structuring and negotiating financing transactions, including term loan and revolving credit facilities and acquisition financing.

Kerry is a “go-to” advisor for large public companies and their boards on corporate governance, SEC reporting, ESG, cybersecurity disclosure, succession planning and compliance program design. Kerry also assists private companies on governance and IPO readiness matters, including with respect to board and committee independence, internal and disclosure controls and similar matters.

Kerry has particular expertise counseling clients on the Investment Advisers Act and assists investment advisers, including private equity funds, hedge funds and venture capital funds, on various status questions and ongoing compliance matters.

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Photo of Robert Kelner Robert Kelner

Robert Kelner is the chair of Covington’s nationally recognized Election and Political Law Practice Group.  He counsels clients on the full range of political law compliance matters, and defends clients in civil and criminal law enforcement investigations concerning political activity. He also leads…

Robert Kelner is the chair of Covington’s nationally recognized Election and Political Law Practice Group.  He counsels clients on the full range of political law compliance matters, and defends clients in civil and criminal law enforcement investigations concerning political activity. He also leads the firm’s prominent congressional investigations practice.

Rob’s political law compliance practice covers federal and state campaign finance, lobbying disclosure, pay to play, and government ethics laws. His expertise includes the Federal Election Campaign Act, Lobbying Disclosure Act, Ethics in Government Act, Foreign Agents Registration Act, and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

He is also a leading authority on the arcane rules governing political contributions and marketing activities by registered investment advisers and municipal securities dealers.

Rob’s political law clients include numerous multinational corporations, many of which are household names.  He counsels major banks, hedge funds, private equity funds, trade associations, PACs, political party committees, candidates, lobbying firms, and politically active high-net-worth individuals. He has represented the Republican National Committee, National Republican Congressional Committee, and National Republican Senatorial Committee.  He also advises Presidential political appointees on the complex vetting and confirmation process.

As a partner in the firm’s White Collar Defense & Investigations practice group, Rob regularly defends clients in congressional investigations before virtually every major congressional investigation committee.  He also defends corporations and others in investigations by the Federal Election Commission, the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, federal Offices of Inspector General, and the House & Senate Ethics Committees.  He has prepared many CEOs and corporate executives for testimony before congressional investigation panels. He regularly leads the Practicing Law Institute’s training program on congressional investigations for in-house lawyers.  In addition, he is frequently retained to lead internal investigations and compliance reviews for major corporate clients concerning lobbying and campaign finance law issues.

Rob has appeared as a commentator on political law matters on The PBS News Hour, CNBC, Fox News, and NPR, and he has been quoted in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Legal Times, Roll Call, The Hill, Politico, USA Today, Financial Times, and other publications.

Rob is Chairman of Covington’s Professional Responsibility Committee and a General Counsel of the firm.  He also currently serves as Chairman of the District of Columbia Bar’s Legislative Practice Committee, and he previously was appointed by the President of the American Bar Association to serve on the ABA’s Standing Committee on Election Law.

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Photo of Zachary G. Parks Zachary G. Parks

Zachary Parks advises corporations, trade associations, campaigns, and high-net worth individuals on their most important and challenging political law problems.

Chambers USA describes Zachary as “highly regarded by his clients in the political law arena,” noting that clients praised him as their “go-to…

Zachary Parks advises corporations, trade associations, campaigns, and high-net worth individuals on their most important and challenging political law problems.

Chambers USA describes Zachary as “highly regarded by his clients in the political law arena,” noting that clients praised him as their “go-to outside attorney for election law, campaign finance, pay-to-play and PAC issues.” Zachary is also a leading lawyer in the emerging corporate political disclosure field, regularly advising corporations on these issues.

Zachary’s expertise includes the Federal Election Campaign Act, the Lobbying Disclosure Act, the Ethics in Government Act, the Foreign Agents Registration Act, and the Securities and Exchange Commission’s pay-to-play rules. He has also helped clients comply with the election and political laws of all 50 states. Zachary also frequently leads political law due diligence for investment firms and corporations during mergers and acquisitions.

He routinely advises corporations and corporate executives on instituting political law compliance programs and conducts compliance training for senior corporate executives and lobbyists. He also has extensive experience conducting corporate internal investigations concerning campaign finance and lobbying law compliance and has defended his political law clients in investigations by the Federal Election Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice, Congressional committees, and in litigation.

Zachary is also the founder and chair of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society’s Political and Election Law Section.

Zachary also has extensive complex litigation experience, having litigated major environmental claims, class actions, and multi-district proceedings for financial institutions, corporations, and public entities.

From 2005 to 2006, Zachary was a law clerk for Judge Thomas B. Griffith on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

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Photo of Andrew Garrahan Andrew Garrahan

Andrew Garrahan represents and counsels clients at the intersection of law and politics. He guides them through both regulatory compliance issues and government investigations on matters including state and federal campaign finance, ethics, lobbying, and corruption, as well as in congressional investigations.

Andrew’s…

Andrew Garrahan represents and counsels clients at the intersection of law and politics. He guides them through both regulatory compliance issues and government investigations on matters including state and federal campaign finance, ethics, lobbying, and corruption, as well as in congressional investigations.

Andrew’s prior career in political fundraising gives him a unique perspective on the challenges faced by his clients, which include corporations, candidates, government officials, political and nonprofit organizations, and private individuals.

Andrew’s counseling and advisory practice includes:

guiding clients on structuring of and compliance for their state and federal lobbying and grassroots advocacy campaigns;
representing campaigns, Super PACs, corporations, trade associations, and individuals on the applicability of the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) and state campaign finance law;
counseling on Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) registration and disclosure, and its interaction with the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA);
helping companies comply with state and federal ethics laws, particularly on gifts and conflicts of interests, and domestic anticorruption; and
auditing corporate political law compliance practices.

Andrew’s investigations and defense work includes:

representing clients in Congressional investigations, including responding to letter requests and subpoenas;
preparing company officers and other individuals for testimony in Congressional investigative hearings;
defending clients in Department of Justice matters related to campaign finance, lobbying, ethics, and public corruption; and
representing clients before the FEC and state campaign finance, lobbying, and ethics regulators.

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Photo of William Mastrianna William Mastrianna

William Mastrianna is a corporate associate in the firm’s Washington, DC office. He advises clients on corporate and securities matters, capital markets transactions, corporate governance considerations and public company disclosure and compliance obligations.

Prior to joining Covington, William served as an attorney-adviser for…

William Mastrianna is a corporate associate in the firm’s Washington, DC office. He advises clients on corporate and securities matters, capital markets transactions, corporate governance considerations and public company disclosure and compliance obligations.

Prior to joining Covington, William served as an attorney-adviser for over five years in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Corporation Finance. While at the SEC, he was responsible for reviewing and analyzing a wide range of transactional and securities compliance matters relating to IPOs, offerings of equity and debt securities, M&A transactions, proxy solicitations, and periodic and current reporting. William served as both an examiner and reviewer on the Rule 14a-8 Shareholder Proposal Taskforce in the Division’s Office of Chief Counsel. While on the taskforce, he was responsible for evaluating and recommending the disposition of no-action requests seeking to exclude shareholder proposals.

While at the SEC, William was seconded to the U.S. Department of the Treasury to serve as a senior policy advisor to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Capital Markets.

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