(Reuters) - Tesla Inc's board recommended on Thursday that shareholders vote against a proposal that would require the electric car maker's chairman to be an independent director, ahead of its annual meeting.
Elon Musk, chief executive of Tesla, is also the chairman of its board and owns a 20 percent stake in the company.
In an SEC filing http://ir.tesla.com/secfiling.cfm?filingid=1564590-18-9339&CIK=1318605, the board stated that its structure is consistent with majority practice at large public companies and it already has seven independent directors.
The filing identified the individual who submitted the proposal as Jing Zhao of Concord, California, who said he is the beneficial owner of 12 shares of Tesla's common stock.
The board also mentioned that Musk already holds senior positions as the chairman of SolarCity and Space X, where he is also the CEO.
Tesla is set to hold its 2018 annual meeting of stockholders on June 5.
(This story has been refiled to correct fourth paragraph, identifying individual behind shareholder proposal.)
(Reporting by Ahmed Farhatha; Editing by Tom Brown)
