Oxford Union President-Elect Ousted Due to Conservative Activist Posts
The future president of the Oxford Union has been removed from his position after failing a vote of confidence that followed his controversial social media posts about Charlie Kirk.
The motion against George Abaraonye reached the necessary two-thirds threshold to remove him from office, according to an announcement from the society.
Disputed Comments
The dispute began after Mr Abaraonye reportedly posted messages on online platforms that appeared to welcome the killing of the American conservative figure, who was fatally shot while addressing a college in the United States.
According to reports, one Instagram post reportedly stated "Charlie Kirk got shot loool" - using an elongated version of the phrase 'lol'.
The student leader is also reported to have posted in a messaging group with other members seeming to welcome the incident.
Vote Outcome
The vote of confidence was conducted over the recent days, with outcomes announced on Tuesday.
Society announcements indicated that 1,228 ballots were cast in favor of removal, while just over five hundred were against the motion.
The announcement confirmed that the future president was deemed to have stepped down in following the Oxford Union's rules.
Election Controversies
Voting operations were informally suspended early on the previous day after the election official was allegedly subjected to "interference, threats, and inappropriate behavior" from multiple individuals.
In a response, the student claimed that the count had been stopped because election administrators believed "no valid outcome could be reached as a result of procedural failures".
His statement unequivocally denied that any representative appointed by George had participated in intimidating or disruptive behavior.
Ongoing Dispute
The president-elect maintained that extremely serious issues had been submitted to the governing body and that he continued as the elected leader.
His statement added that he was "proud and thankful to have the backing of well in excess of a majority of university members" who supported a "safe election and oppose efforts to undermine the electoral process".
Opponents have argued that any failure to remove him would "demonstrate internationally that the Oxford Union has chosen ideology over integrity".
External Reactions
On recently, Mikey McCoy presented an public message to the society on a related program podcast.
The message criticized the union of becoming a institution where "student leaders openly applaud the killing of a political opponent".
The communication warned that if Mr Abaraonye were to keep his position, supporters would "personally contact every American political speaker who has ever graced the union's chamber and advise them against future participation".
The Oxford Union had previously condemned Mr Abaraonye's remarks after the activist's killing and confirmed that complaints submitted about him had been forwarded for disciplinary proceedings.
The president-elect had been one of multiple members to debate with Kirk at the society in May.