Disease Detection International, a tiny Irvine manufacturer...

Disease Detection International, a tiny Irvine manufacturer of medical diagnostic kits, said the final tally of votes cast at its annual meeting Aug. 31 confirms that all five incumbent company directors were reelected by shareholders who rejected a hostile takeover effort by DDI’s former parent, Environmental Diagnostics. Environmental Diagnostics, which moved from Irvine to Burlington, N.C., last year, launched a proxy contest in June to solicit shareholder support for a slate of DDI directors that it nominated. Environmental Diagnostics votes about 25% of DDI’s outstanding capital stock. A preliminary count of votes released last week indicated that the entire incumbent slate--including former U.S. Secretary of Interior James G. Watt, who is DDI’s chairman--was reelected. The final vote showed that the existing DDI board received the votes of 64.6 million shares, 20% more than the 52.2 million shares voted in favor of the challenging slate. Environmental Diagnostics voted 38.6 million shares for the challenge slate.