diff --git a/internal/consensus/replayer.go b/internal/consensus/replayer.go
index 5c45c5cbb..416c5a24b 100644
--- a/internal/consensus/replayer.go
+++ b/internal/consensus/replayer.go
@@ -320,7 +320,7 @@ func (r *BlockReplayer) execInitChain(ctx context.Context, rs *replayState, stat
 		return nil
 	}
 	stateBlockHeight := state.LastBlockHeight
-	nextVals, err := validatorSetUpdateFromGenesis(r.genDoc, r.nodeProTxHash)
+	nextVals, err := validatorSetUpdateFromGenesis(r.genDoc)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
@@ -382,7 +382,7 @@ func (r *BlockReplayer) publishEvents(
 	return nil
 }
 
-func validatorSetUpdateFromGenesis(genDoc *types.GenesisDoc, nodeProTxHash types.ProTxHash) (*abci.ValidatorSetUpdate, error) {
+func validatorSetUpdateFromGenesis(genDoc *types.GenesisDoc) (*abci.ValidatorSetUpdate, error) {
 	if len(genDoc.QuorumHash) != crypto.DefaultHashSize {
 		return nil, nil
 	}
@@ -394,12 +394,11 @@ func validatorSetUpdateFromGenesis(genDoc *types.GenesisDoc, nodeProTxHash types
 			return nil, fmt.Errorf("blockReplayer blocks error when validating validator: %s", err)
 		}
 	}
-	validatorSet := types.NewValidatorSetWithLocalNodeProTxHash(
+	validatorSet := types.NewValidatorSetCheckPublicKeys(
 		validators,
 		genDoc.ThresholdPublicKey,
 		genDoc.QuorumType,
 		genDoc.QuorumHash,
-		nodeProTxHash,
 	)
 	err := validatorSet.ValidateBasic()
 	if err != nil {
diff --git a/internal/state/current_round_state.go b/internal/state/current_round_state.go
index b14498d38..f16bc353d 100644
--- a/internal/state/current_round_state.go
+++ b/internal/state/current_round_state.go
@@ -195,7 +195,7 @@ func (candidate *CurrentRoundState) populateValsetUpdates() error {
 
 	base := candidate.Base
 
-	newValSet, err := valsetUpdate(candidate.ProTxHash, update, base.Validators, candidate.NextConsensusParams.Validator)
+	newValSet, err := valsetUpdate(update, base.Validators, candidate.NextConsensusParams.Validator)
 	if err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("validator set updates: %w", err)
 	}
@@ -313,7 +313,6 @@ func RoundParamsFromInitChain(resp *abci.ResponseInitChain) (RoundParams, error)
 
 // valsetUpdate processes validator set updates received from ABCI app.
 func valsetUpdate(
-	nodeProTxHash types.ProTxHash,
 	vu *abci.ValidatorSetUpdate,
 	currentVals *types.ValidatorSet,
 	params types.ValidatorParams,
@@ -339,8 +338,8 @@ func valsetUpdate(
 			}
 		} else {
 			// if we don't have proTxHash, NewValidatorSetWithLocalNodeProTxHash behaves like NewValidatorSet
-			nValSet = types.NewValidatorSetWithLocalNodeProTxHash(validatorUpdates, thresholdPubKey,
-				currentVals.QuorumType, quorumHash, nodeProTxHash)
+			nValSet = types.NewValidatorSetCheckPublicKeys(validatorUpdates, thresholdPubKey,
+				currentVals.QuorumType, quorumHash)
 		}
 	} else {
 		// validators not changed, but we might have a new quorum hash or threshold public key
diff --git a/types/protobuf.go b/types/protobuf.go
index 2bfa083b9..671e21321 100644
--- a/types/protobuf.go
+++ b/types/protobuf.go
@@ -164,12 +164,21 @@ func (pb2tm) ValidatorSetFromProtoUpdate(
 	valSetUpdate *abci.ValidatorSetUpdate,
 ) (*ValidatorSet, error) {
 	hasPublicKeys := true
-	for _, v := range valSetUpdate.ValidatorUpdates {
+	for i, v := range valSetUpdate.ValidatorUpdates {
 		if v.PubKey == nil {
 			hasPublicKeys = false
 			break
 		}
+
+		pubkey, err := cryptoenc.PubKeyFromProto(*v.PubKey)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("invalid pubkey of validator %d (%x) in valset update: %w", i, v.ProTxHash, err)
+		}
+		if len(pubkey.Bytes()) == 0 {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("pubkey of validator %d (%x) in valset update has zero length", i, v.ProTxHash)
+		}
 	}
+
 	tmVals, pub, quorumHash, err := PB2TM.ValidatorUpdatesFromValidatorSet(valSetUpdate)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
diff --git a/types/validator_set.go b/types/validator_set.go
index 01e0cf292..eebf70c0e 100644
--- a/types/validator_set.go
+++ b/types/validator_set.go
@@ -100,21 +100,21 @@ func NewValidatorSet(valz []*Validator, newThresholdPublicKey crypto.PubKey, quo
 	return vals
 }
 
-// NewValidatorSetWithLocalNodeProTxHash initializes a ValidatorSet the same way as NewValidatorSet does,
-// however it does allows to set the localNodeProTxHash to more easily identify if the validator set should have public
-// keys. If the local node is part of the validator set the public keys must be present
-func NewValidatorSetWithLocalNodeProTxHash(
+// NewValidatorSetCheckPublicKeys initializes a ValidatorSet the same way as NewValidatorSet does,
+// but determines if the public keys are present.
+func NewValidatorSetCheckPublicKeys(
 	valz []*Validator,
 	newThresholdPublicKey crypto.PubKey,
 	quorumType btcjson.LLMQType,
 	quorumHash crypto.QuorumHash,
-	localNodeProTxHash crypto.ProTxHash,
 ) *ValidatorSet {
-	vals := NewValidatorSet(valz, newThresholdPublicKey, quorumType, quorumHash, false)
-	if vals.HasProTxHash(localNodeProTxHash) {
-		vals.HasPublicKeys = true
+	hasPublicKeys := true
+	for _, val := range valz {
+		if val.PubKey == nil || len(val.PubKey.Bytes()) == 0 {
+			hasPublicKeys = false
+		}
 	}
-	return vals
+	return NewValidatorSet(valz, newThresholdPublicKey, quorumType, quorumHash, hasPublicKeys)
 }
 
 // NewEmptyValidatorSet initializes a ValidatorSet with no validators
@@ -199,6 +199,9 @@ func (vals *ValidatorSet) ThresholdPublicKeyValid() error {
 		return errors.New("threshold public key is wrong size")
 	}
 	if len(vals.Validators) == 1 && vals.HasPublicKeys {
+		if vals.Validators[0].PubKey == nil {
+			return errors.New("validator public key is not set")
+		}
 		if !vals.Validators[0].PubKey.Equals(vals.ThresholdPublicKey) {
 			return errors.New("incorrect threshold public key")
 		}
diff --git a/types/vote.go b/types/vote.go
index 82c6f1186..ea844a1a4 100644
--- a/types/vote.go
+++ b/types/vote.go
@@ -46,6 +46,7 @@ var (
 	ErrVoteExtensionTypeWrongForRequestID = errors.New("provided vote extension type does not support sign request ID")
 	ErrVoteInvalidValidatorProTxHash      = errors.New("invalid validator pro_tx_hash")
 	ErrVoteInvalidValidatorPubKeySize     = errors.New("invalid validator public key size")
+	ErrVoteMissingValidatorPubKey         = errors.New("missing validator public key")
 	ErrVoteInvalidBlockSignature          = errors.New("invalid block signature")
 	ErrVoteInvalidStateSignature          = errors.New("invalid state signature")
 	ErrVoteStateSignatureShouldBeNil      = errors.New("state signature when voting for nil block")
@@ -197,6 +198,11 @@ func (vote *Vote) verifyBasic(proTxHash ProTxHash, pubKey crypto.PubKey) error {
 	if !bytes.Equal(proTxHash, vote.ValidatorProTxHash) {
 		return ErrVoteInvalidValidatorProTxHash
 	}
+
+	if pubKey == nil {
+		return ErrVoteMissingValidatorPubKey
+	}
+
 	if len(pubKey.Bytes()) != bls12381.PubKeySize {
 		return ErrVoteInvalidValidatorPubKeySize
 	}