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The future president of the Oxford Union has been removed from his position after losing a vote of confidence that came after his disputed social media posts about Charlie Kirk.

The vote against George Abaraonye reached the required super-majority to remove him from office, according to an announcement from the organization.

Contentious Posts

The dispute began after Mr Abaraonye reportedly posted messages on social media that appeared to welcome the death of the American conservative figure, who was shot dead while addressing a university in the United States.

According to sources, one Instagram post reportedly stated "Charlie Kirk got shot loool" - using an elongated version of the acronym for 'laughing out loud'.

The student leader is also reported 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 weekend, with outcomes announced on Tuesday.

Society announcements showed that over twelve hundred votes were cast supporting removal, while just over five hundred were opposed the motion.

The notice confirmed that the future president was considered to have stepped down in accordance with the society's regulations.

Procedural Disputes

Proceedings were temporarily halted early on Monday after the returning officer was reportedly subjected to "obstruction, intimidation, and unwarranted hostility" from several representatives.

In a statement, Mr Abaraonye 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 unequivocally denied that any person acting for George had participated in threatening or obstructive conduct.

Ongoing Dispute

The president-elect stated that extremely serious issues had been submitted to the governing body and that he continued as the elected leader.

His comment added that George was "grateful and honored to have the backing of well in excess of a majority of university members" who supported a "safe election and resist attempts to subvert democracy".

Opponents have argued that any decision to keep him would "signal to the world that the society has prioritized politics over principles".

External Reactions

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

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

The statement warned that if the student were to remain in post, Kirk's allies would "directly reach out to every U.S. political figure who has ever graced the union's chamber and advise them against future participation".

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

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