Student Society President-Elect Ousted Following Conservative Activist Comments

Student society event
The activist and student leader participated in a debate at the student society in May

The future president of the Oxford Union has been removed from his position after losing a no-confidence vote that followed his controversial social media posts about Charlie Kirk.

The vote against George Abaraonye achieved the necessary two-thirds threshold to oust him from his position, according to an statement from the organization.

Disputed Comments

The controversy began after Mr Abaraonye reportedly posted messages on social media that seemed to celebrate the killing of the American conservative figure, who was shot dead while speaking at a university in the United States.

According to reports, one social media message reportedly read "Charlie Kirk got shot loool" - using an elongated version of the phrase 'lol'.

The student leader is also said to have written in a WhatsApp chat with fellow students seeming to express approval of the event.

Vote Outcome

The no-confidence motion was conducted over the weekend, with outcomes announced on Tuesday.

Official notices indicated that over twelve hundred votes were cast in favor of removal, while just over five hundred were against the motion.

The announcement confirmed that the president-elect was considered to have stepped down in following the Oxford Union's rules.

Society notice
The Oxford Union announced the result of the no-confidence vote on Tuesday morning

Election Controversies

Voting operations were informally suspended early on Monday after the returning officer was reportedly subjected to "interference, threats, and inappropriate behavior" from multiple individuals.

In a response, the student asserted that the vote tally had been halted because electoral officials believed "no valid outcome could be reached as a result of process errors".

His response categorically refuted that any person appointed by George had participated in intimidating or disruptive behavior.

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 support of significantly more than half of university members" who voted to have a "secure voting process and oppose efforts to undermine the electoral process".

Critics have argued that any decision to keep him would "demonstrate internationally that the Oxford Union has chosen ideology over integrity".

Charlie Kirk speaking
Charlie Kirk was shot dead while addressing a college in September

External Reactions

On recently, Mikey McCoy presented an public message to the Oxford Union on a related program broadcast.

The letter criticized the union of becoming a institution where "presidents of the union openly applaud the assassination of a political opponent".

The communication warned that if the student were to remain in post, Kirk's allies would "personally contact every American political speaker who has ever spoken at the society and advise them against future participation".

The society had earlier criticized the student's remarks after the activist's killing and confirmed that complaints submitted about him had been forwarded for disciplinary proceedings.

The student leader had been one of multiple members to debate with Kirk at the society in May.

Kenneth Simpson
Kenneth Simpson

A tech enthusiast and writer with a passion for exploring digital innovations and internet connectivity trends.