Student Society President-Elect Removed Following Charlie Kirk Posts
The future president of the prestigious debating society has been removed from his position after failing a no-confidence vote that followed his controversial online comments about Charlie Kirk.
The vote against the student leader reached the required two-thirds threshold to oust him from his position, according to an statement from the society.
Contentious Posts
The controversy erupted after the student reportedly shared messages on online platforms that appeared to celebrate the death of Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot while addressing a university in the United States.
According to sources, one Instagram post reportedly read "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 WhatsApp chat with fellow students seeming to welcome the incident.
Vote Outcome
The vote of confidence was conducted over the weekend, with results revealed on this week.
Official notices showed that 1,228 ballots were cast supporting no confidence, while just over five hundred were opposed the motion.
The announcement confirmed that the future president was considered to have stepped down in following the Oxford Union's rules.
Election Controversies
Voting operations were temporarily halted early on Monday after the returning officer was allegedly subjected to "interference, threats, and inappropriate behavior" from several representatives.
In a response, Mr Abaraonye claimed that the count had been stopped because election administrators believed "no valid outcome could be reached as a result of process errors".
His statement unequivocally denied that any person acting for the student had participated in threatening or obstructive conduct.
Ongoing Dispute
The student maintained that extremely serious issues had been submitted to the governing body and that he remained the elected leader.
His comment added that George was "proud and thankful to have the backing of well in excess of a majority of students at Oxford" who supported 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 Reactions
On Friday, Mikey McCoy presented an public message to the society on The Charlie Kirk Show podcast.
The message criticized the union of becoming a institution where "student leaders publicly celebrate the killing of a political opponent".
The statement warned that if Mr Abaraonye were to remain in post, Kirk's allies would "personally contact every U.S. political figure who has ever spoken at the society and advise them against future participation".
The society had previously criticized the student's remarks after the activist's killing and stated that concerns submitted about him had been referred for official review.
The president-elect had been one of multiple members to discuss with Kirk at the union in spring.