Carl Icahn plans to run a full Yahoo slate

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Dissident Yahoo investor Carl Icahn says he’s still planning to run a full slate of nominees for the company’s board at the annual meeting Aug. 1.

Bolstered by Microsoft’s announcement this morning that it would be open to trying to seal a full takeover again if a new board were elected, Icahn said in a phone interview that it’s full speed ahead.

‘Right now, we’re going with a full slate,’ Icahn said. And that’s likely to stick: Asked when he would make his final decision, Icahn replied: ‘We really only have a few days, so probably this will take care of itself.’

Some large Yahoo holders, unhappy as they are that talks with Microsoft broke down, recently told us that they thought Icahn had a better shot at getting his team on board if he ran only four nominees rather than nine. But Icahn evidently thinks he can win the whole thing, which would then give him a clear mandate and the raw power to get a deal done with the software giant.

Besides today’s Microsoft endorsement, Icahn is pursuing another tack to woo investor votes. According to people familiar with the process, he is interviewing CEO candidates to replace embattled co-founder Jerry Yang.

Yahoo shareholders nervous about handing the company over to Icahn could be mollified if Icahn succeeds in getting a commitment to serve from a respected top executive before Aug 1.

Icahn declined to address that aspect of his campaign, citing cumbersome disclosure rules.

-- Joseph Menn