diff --git a/.changelog/6523.bugfix.md b/.changelog/6523.bugfix.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..12a7ce08d3b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changelog/6523.bugfix.md
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+go/consensus/cometbft/apps/governance: Ignore nodes when runtime votes
diff --git a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/governance/transactions.go b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/governance/transactions.go
index 75da85d314d..fc45723ec08 100644
--- a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/governance/transactions.go
+++ b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/governance/transactions.go
@@ -246,18 +246,27 @@ func (app *Application) castVote(
 
 	// Query signer entity descriptor.
 	var submitterNodes []signature.PublicKey
-	registryState := registryState.NewMutableState(ctx.State())
-	submitterEntity, err := registryState.Entity(ctx, ctx.TxSigner())
-	switch err {
-	case nil:
-		submitterNodes = submitterEntity.Nodes
-	case registryAPI.ErrNoSuchEntity:
+	switch ctx.IsMessageExecution() {
+	case true:
+		// Runtime messages are not real consensus transactions as they
+		// don't have a transaction signer.
 		if !params.AllowVoteWithoutEntity {
 			return governance.ErrNotEligible
 		}
-		// Default to an empty set of nodes so delegators without entities can vote.
-	default:
-		return fmt.Errorf("governance: failed to query entity: %w", err)
+	case false:
+		registryState := registryState.NewMutableState(ctx.State())
+		submitterEntity, err := registryState.Entity(ctx, ctx.TxSigner())
+		switch err {
+		case nil:
+			submitterNodes = submitterEntity.Nodes
+		case registryAPI.ErrNoSuchEntity:
+			if !params.AllowVoteWithoutEntity {
+				return governance.ErrNotEligible
+			}
+			// Default to an empty set of nodes so delegators without entities can vote.
+		default:
+			return fmt.Errorf("governance: failed to query entity: %w", err)
+		}
 	}
 
 	// Load current validator sets.
diff --git a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/finalization.go b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/finalization.go
index 47781c9ec49..93f647df3a6 100644
--- a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/finalization.go
+++ b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/finalization.go
@@ -179,10 +179,7 @@ func (app *Application) tryFinalizeRoundInsideTx( //nolint: gocyclo
 	if err = app.removeRuntimeMessages(ctx, state, rtState.Runtime.ID, msgs, round); err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
-	msgEvents, err := app.processRuntimeMessages(ctx, rtState, sc.Commitment.Messages)
-	if err != nil {
-		return fmt.Errorf("failed to process runtime messages: %w", err)
-	}
+	msgEvents := app.processRuntimeMessages(ctx, rtState, sc.Commitment.Messages)
 
 	// Compute good and bad entities.
 	var (
diff --git a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/messages.go b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/messages.go
index 3e0981b958e..eacd501f763 100644
--- a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/messages.go
+++ b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/messages.go
@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@ func (app *Application) processRuntimeMessages(
 	ctx *tmapi.Context,
 	rtState *roothash.RuntimeState,
 	msgs []message.Message,
-) ([]*roothash.MessageEvent, error) {
+) []*roothash.MessageEvent {
 	ctx = ctx.WithMessageExecution()
 	defer ctx.Close()
 	ctx = ctx.WithCallerAddress(staking.NewRuntimeAddress(rtState.Runtime.ID))
@@ -165,7 +165,7 @@ func (app *Application) processRuntimeMessages(
 			Result: cbor.Marshal(result),
 		})
 	}
-	return events, nil
+	return events
 }
 
 func (app *Application) doBeforeSchedule(ctx *tmapi.Context, msg any) (any, error) {
diff --git a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/transactions.go b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/transactions.go
index 24920755911..4866b8fc668 100644
--- a/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/transactions.go
+++ b/go/consensus/cometbft/apps/roothash/transactions.go
@@ -87,8 +87,8 @@ func (app *Application) executorCommit(
 		msgCtx := ctx.WithSimulation()
 		defer msgCtx.Close()
 
-		_, msgErr := app.processRuntimeMessages(msgCtx, rtState, msgs)
-		return msgErr
+		_ = app.processRuntimeMessages(msgCtx, rtState, msgs)
+		return nil
 	}
 
 	// Verify and add commitments to the pool.