Nov 18 (Reuters) - Top mutual fund manager Vanguard said

clients will be able to direct the proxy votes of some $250

billion of its assets next year, doubling the scale of its

effort to bring corporate democracy to the masses.

In addition to making shareholders of several new funds

eligible for its "Investor Choice" program, Vanguard executives

told Reuters on Friday the closely held firm will offer a new

voting option with less support for socially focused matters.

With $9.9 trillion in assets under management, Vanguard has

come to play an outsized role, along with its rival BlackRock ( BLK )

, in corporate elections. This in turn has drawn

criticism from many sides, especially about the firms' proxy

votes related to environmental, social and governance (ESG)

issues.

Vanguard has worked in recent years to give investors more

say over the votes, which could dampen some criticism. "We

recognize that well-informed, smart people can have different

opinions, and we want to deliver options to those investors,"

said John Galloway, Vanguard's global head of investment

stewardship.

Galloway in September said only 2% of eligible investors

opted in to a previous version of its voting-choice program for

the 2024 proxy season, but he vowed to keep building it up by

overcoming technical and logistical challenges.

Vanguard's program does not allow investors to specify votes

at specific companies. Rather, they may choose among several

"policy options" including one that is more likely to back ESG

shareholder resolutions

New for 2025 will be a "wealth-focused" policy option from

proxy advisory firm Egan-Jones that "that focuses on maximizing

shareholder value without being influenced by political or

social agendas," according to Vanguard's description.

Vanguard will also allow retirement plan sponsors that offer

certain funds to participate in the program, either by choosing

a voting policy for their assets or passing the choice to their

own participants.