Student Society Future Leader Removed Following Charlie Kirk Posts
The future president of the Oxford Union has been ousted from office after failing a no-confidence vote that followed his disputed social media posts about the conservative activist.
The motion against George Abaraonye achieved the required super-majority to remove him from office, according to an statement from the organization.
Contentious Posts
The controversy erupted after Mr Abaraonye reportedly posted messages on social media that seemed to celebrate the death of the American conservative figure, who was shot dead while speaking at a college in the United States.
According to sources, one social media message reportedly stated "Charlie Kirk got shot loool" - using an extended form of the acronym for 'laughing out loud'.
The student leader is also reported to have posted in a messaging group with fellow students appearing to express approval of the event.
Vote Outcome
The no-confidence motion was conducted over the weekend, with results announced on Tuesday.
Official notices indicated that over twelve hundred votes were cast in favor of no confidence, while 501 were against the motion.
The announcement confirmed that the future president was considered to have stepped down in following the Oxford Union's rules.
Election Controversies
Proceedings were temporarily halted early on the previous day after the returning officer was allegedly subjected to "obstruction, intimidation, and unwarranted hostility" from several representatives.
In a response, the student claimed that the vote tally had been stopped because electoral officials believed "no legitimate and true result could be reached as a result of procedural failures".
His response categorically refuted that any person appointed by the student had engaged in threatening or obstructive conduct.
Continuing Controversy
The president-elect stated that extremely serious issues had been submitted to the governing body and that he continued as the elected leader.
His statement added that George was "grateful and honored to have the backing of significantly more than half of university members" who voted to have a "secure voting process and oppose efforts to undermine the electoral process".
Opponents have argued that any decision to keep him would "demonstrate internationally that the society has prioritized politics over principles".
External Responses
On recently, Mikey McCoy presented an open letter to the Oxford Union on The Charlie Kirk Show podcast.
The letter accused the society of becoming a institution where "presidents of the union publicly celebrate the killing of a ideological rival".
The communication warned that if the student were to remain in post, Kirk's allies would "directly reach out to every American political speaker who has ever spoken at the society and urge them never again to lend their name".
The Oxford Union had earlier criticized the student's remarks after the activist's killing and confirmed that complaints filed against him had been referred for official review.
The student leader had been one of multiple members to debate with Kirk at the union in May.