Twitter shareholders approve Elon Musk's takeover ahead of court battle

• Twitter shareholders on Tuesday voted in favor of Elon Musk's $44 billion acquisition of the company.
• Musk's April offer values Twitter at $54.20 per share, more than it's currently worth.

Twitter's shareholders on Tuesday approved Elon Musk's takeover of the social media platform, setting the stage for a testy legal battle as the world's richest person tries to wriggle out of his deal.

Twitter had previously urged investors to green-light the $44 billion acquisition, which values the company at $54.20 per share, a significant premium over the current going price for Twitter stock. Shares opened at $40.76 Tuesday.

The company said the measure passed based on a preliminary count and that it will provide a final vote count to shareholders at a later date.

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Tuesday's vote — in a speedy, 6-minute meeting — is the latest chapter in the complicated Musk-Twitter saga, which began as a surprise takeover offer and has evolved into a full-blown circus.

After buying up a chunk of Twitter stock this spring and then offering to take the company private with a group of investors, Musk in July announced that he was calling off his bid to buy the firm. He alleges that Twitter misrepresented the number of phony accounts on its platform, amounting to a breach of their agreement. Musk waived due diligence when striking the deal.

Twitter then sued Musk to force him to go through with the purchase. That trial begins in Delaware Chancery Court on October 17.

Complicating matters further is a recent whistleblower complaint from Twitter's ex-security chief, Peter Zatko, who alleged that his former employer lied to Musk about bot accounts and had subpar security practices. Twitter dismissed the complaint as inaccurate, but experts told Insider that it could give Musk ammunition in his legal battle.

Zatko testifies before Congress on Tuesday.