A judge struck down the compensation package earlier this year, but Tesla is putting it back before shareholders for a vote
Tesla $TSLA has a lot of problems at the moment. People aren’t buying enough of its cars. Its stock is down about 29% so far this year. It’s laying off tons of people and freezing hiring in North America. But one problem has the company reaching out to shareholders ahead of its annual meeting next month: CEO Elon Musk isn’t getting paid enough money.
A filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, first reported by the electric vehicle news site Electrek, discloses that some of the proxy materials Tesla has been sending out include promoted posts on X $TWTR, the social media website that was known as Twitter — until Musk bought it in 2022.
“You deserve a final say,” one of the X posts reads. “A Delaware Court recently overturned a longstanding decision made by Tesla stockholders. We are promoting you another opportunity to vote to protect your rights and your investments.” Links in the posts point X users to votetesla.com, a site that lobbies for Tesla’s preferred positions on measures to voted on at the shareholders meeting.
In 2018, a shareholder sued to block a massive $55 billion pay package for Musk — who has the company’s largest ownership stake at 13% — that was comprised largely of stock. This January, a Delaware judge sided with the shareholder and struck down Musk’s compensation package. So now among the proposals that Tesla is putting to a vote at its annual meeting is one to re-approve the money for Musk. Another is a proposal to relocate the company’s state of incorporation fromDelaware to Texas.
“Texas is Tesla’s home,” another of the posts reads. “Our management, headquarters and principal manufacturing facility are in Texas and the legal framework is strong, fair and more appropriate to our mission. Vote FOR the incorporation of Tesla in Texas.”
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