An article from the Orlando Sentinel paper on the vote:
<Disney voters: 43 percent against Eisner
Michael Eisner faced a rebuke of his leadership of The Walt Disney Co. Wednesday as 43 percent of shareholders withheld their support for him in a vote at the company's annual shareholder meeting.
The number of shares withheld was higher than many had been expecting, and represented a victory for shareholder activists Stanley Gold and Roy E. Disney, former board members who have been leading a shareholder revolt against him.
Eisner is running for re-election unopposed, so his job is not in immediate danger. But the depth of shareholder dissatisfaction with him could lead to other steps, such as a separation of the chairman and CEO roles, both of which he currently holds.
Earlier in the meeting Eisner came under attack.
"Shareholders have waited too long and spoken too clearly: Michael Eisner must leave now," said Stanley Gold, a former board member who, with Roy Disney, is leading a campaign to replace the company's chief.
Gold and Disney were given 15 minutes to address shareholders and were greeted by cheers and applause.
Disney, a nephew of Walt Disney who left the board of directors three months ago, said the company's current management was "cynical" and appears to believe "that you don't really need to give your guests value for their money."
But he said The Walt Disney Co. "is more than just a business."
"It's an authentic American icon, which is to say that over the years, it has come to stand for something real and meaningful and worthwhile," although he said it has been weakened under Eisner's leadership.
Disney and Gold have aggressively lobbied shareholders to withhold votes to re-elect Eisner and board members John Bryson, Judith Estrin and George Mitchell, the former senator from Maine.
Disney and Gold say a significant no-confidence vote would push the board to replace Eisner.
Gold said he believed the results would show 40 percent of shareholders had withheld their votes for Eisner, while 20 percent had declined to vote to re-elect the other board members.
Balloting closed at 12:15 p.m. Eisner is the longest-serving chief executive among companies with shares on the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Sources told the Orlando Sentinel and Los Angeles Times that it's likely the board will decide to strip Eisner of his title as chairman but retain him as chief executive.
Taking the podium after Disney's comments, Eisner said, "That was enjoyable," adding that "the conclusions you just heard are fundamentally wrong."
Earlier today, Eisner said the company's stock price has improved greatly over the past year and that consumers will value the Disney brand. Shares in the company were trading at $26.69 a share mid-afternoon on the New York Stock Exchange. That was down 7 cents from the previous day's close but well ahead of the stock's 52-week high of $14.84 a share.
"We are confident that people from all over the world will want to see our productions," he said.
"I love this company," he said. "The board loves this company. And we are all passionate about the output of this company."
Mitchell said the board is working in the shareholders' best interest.
"No matter how large or how small your holdings, you've placed your trust in the operations of this company, and we must do everything possible to honor your trust," Mitchell said.>
