Musk’s myriad other interests – running Twitter, starting an artificial intelligence company and his increasingly political statements – have raised concerns about his focus.
What is more, the vote on moving to Texas requires active approval from 50pc of shareholders, meaning that those who abstain are counted as ‘no’ votes. This is a major ask for a company that has a wide retail shareholder base not accustomed to activism.
Last week, the investing website eToro said 24pc of Tesla shareholders on its platform had voted with three weeks to go until the meeting.
Robyn Denholm, Tesla’s chairman, has compared the task of winning approval to climbing Mount Everest. In recent weeks she has embarked on a roadshow to encourage institutional shareholders such as Vanguard, State Street and BlackRock to support the proposals.
That too may be an uphill battle. Vanguard, the biggest Tesla shareholder besides Musk with a 7.3pc stake, voted against the pay package last time.
Baillie Gifford, the Scottish fund manager, supported the scheme in 2018 when it was the company’s second-biggest shareholder and has vowed to back the deal again. However, it has significantly sold down its Tesla stake since the last vote.
Last week a set of shareholders including the British union Unison, wealth manager Nordea and New York City public pension funds urged other investors to vote against the proposals. They said that Mr Musk was distracted, writing: “The board has yet to ensure that Tesla has a full-time CEO.”
Ross Gerber, an outspoken longtime Tesla shareholder, says he expects Musk’s gambit to fail. “I’d be pretty impressed if this passes. I think no human would believe that this was a fairly negotiated pay package.”
Gerber says Musk has become too divisive. “He is now as polarising as Kanye West or Donald Trump. And so when you’re selling any product, your CEO being a polarising figure is not helpful.”
However, Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, predicts that Musk will be victorious. “There have been many headwinds for the Tesla story and on June 13 this should be put in the rear view mirror,” he says.
Musk is seeking 25pc voting control over Tesla, compared to today’s 13pc stake. That would set him up for a new clash with investors for whom he could once do no wrong.
Defeat could have consequences: the billionaire has said that if he can’t have greater control, he may develop new technologies such as AI and robotics outside of the company.
As the vote draws nearer, it is more than just Musk’s historic pay deal that is at stake.