Oxford Union President-Elect Removed Due to Conservative Activist Posts

Student society event
Charlie Kirk and George Abaraonye participated in a discussion at the student society in May

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 the conservative activist.

The vote against the student leader achieved the necessary two-thirds threshold to remove him from office, according to an announcement from the organization.

Disputed Comments

The dispute erupted after the student reportedly shared messages on online platforms that seemed to celebrate the killing of the American conservative figure, who was shot dead while addressing a college in the United States.

According to reports, 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 welcome the incident.

Vote Outcome

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

Society announcements indicated that over twelve hundred votes were cast supporting removal, while 501 were opposed the motion.

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

Society notice
The student society announced the result of the confidence motion on Tuesday morning

Procedural Disputes

Proceedings were informally suspended early on the previous day after the returning officer was allegedly subjected to "interference, threats, and inappropriate behavior" from several representatives.

In a statement, 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 statement categorically refuted that any representative appointed by George had engaged in threatening or obstructive conduct.

Continuing Controversy

The student stated that significant concerns had been submitted to the governing body and that he remained president-elect.

His comment added that George was "grateful and honored to have the backing of significantly more than half of university members" who voted to have a "safe election and resist attempts to subvert democracy".

Opponents have argued that any failure to remove him would "signal to the world that the Oxford Union has chosen ideology over integrity".

Conservative activist
Charlie Kirk was shot dead while speaking at a university in September

External Reactions

On recently, Mikey McCoy presented an open letter to the Oxford Union on a related program podcast.

The message accused the union of becoming a place where "presidents of the union publicly celebrate the assassination of a political opponent".

The statement indicated that if the student were to keep his position, supporters would "personally contact every U.S. political figure who has ever graced the union's chamber and advise them against future participation".

The Oxford Union had previously criticized the student's comments after Kirk's death and confirmed that complaints filed against him had been forwarded for disciplinary proceedings.

The student leader had been one of several students to discuss with the activist at the union in spring.

Jennifer Moyer
Jennifer Moyer

A seasoned journalist with a passion for uncovering stories that matter, bringing years of experience in digital media.