By requiring a majority vote..those not receiving that majority would be asked to resign...thus opening a position for another individual that the board could nominate or even better a shareholder might nominate. There could be other benefits too but IMHO this is just a beginning for the shareholders to have more of a say in the directors being elected.
"We believe that a majority vote standard in director elections would give shareholders a meaningful role in the director election process. Under the Company’s current standard, a nominee in a director election can be elected with as little as a single affirmative vote, even if a substantial majority of the votes cast are “withheld” from that nominee. The majority vote standard would require that a director receive a majority of the vote cast in order to be elected to the Board.
Some companies have adopted board governance policies requiring director nominees that fail to receive majority support from shareholders to tender their resignations to the board........."
