TOKYO : Two of the largest U.S. public pension systems have voted against the re-election of Toyota Motor Corp chairman Akio Toyoda, shareholder voting records showed, sharpening the focus on the automaker's annual meeting later this month.
The California Public Employees' Retirement System and the Office of the New York City Comptroller both also voted for a resolution urging Toyota to improve disclosure of its lobbying on climate change, according to online postings by the funds. The details of the votes come after two leading proxy advisory firms last week raised issues about governance at the automaker. One of them, Glass Lewis, recommended shareholders vote against re-electing Toyoda, citing what it said was his responsibility for the lack of a sufficiently independent board.