Oxford Union President-Elect Ousted Due to Charlie Kirk Comments
The president-elect of the Oxford Union has been ousted from office after losing a no-confidence vote that followed his controversial social media posts about the conservative activist.
The motion against George Abaraonye reached the necessary two-thirds threshold to oust him from his position, according to an announcement from the society.
Contentious Posts
The controversy began after Mr Abaraonye reportedly shared messages on online platforms that appeared to welcome the death of Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot while addressing a college in Utah.
According to sources, one social media message reportedly read "Charlie Kirk got shot loool" - using an extended form of the acronym for 'laughing out loud'.
The president-elect is also said to have written in a messaging group with other members seeming to express approval of the event.
Election Results
The vote of confidence took place over the recent days, with outcomes revealed on Tuesday.
Society announcements indicated that over twelve hundred votes were cast supporting removal, while just over five hundred were opposed the motion.
The announcement stated that the future president was considered to have resigned in accordance with the Oxford Union's rules.
Procedural Disputes
Voting operations were temporarily halted early on the previous day after the election official was allegedly subjected to "interference, threats, and inappropriate behavior" from several representatives.
In a response, the student asserted that the vote tally had been halted because electoral officials believed "no legitimate and true result could be reached as a result of process errors".
His statement unequivocally denied that any person appointed by George had participated in threatening or obstructive conduct.
Ongoing Dispute
The president-elect stated that extremely serious issues had been referred to the governing body and that he remained president-elect.
His comment added that he was "grateful and honored to have the backing of significantly more than half of students at Oxford" who voted to have a "secure voting process and oppose efforts to undermine the electoral process".
Critics have said that any failure to remove him would "signal to the world that the society has prioritized politics over principles".
External Responses
On Friday, Kirk's former chief of staff presented an public message to the society on a related program broadcast.
The letter accused the union of becoming a place where "student leaders publicly celebrate the assassination of a ideological rival".
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 graced the union's chamber and urge them never again to lend their name".
The society had previously condemned the student's remarks after the activist's killing and confirmed that concerns submitted about him had been forwarded for disciplinary proceedings.
The president-elect had been one of several students to debate with the activist at the society in spring.