🔗 Share this article Student Society Future Leader Removed Following Charlie Kirk Comments Charlie Kirk and George Abaraonye participated in a discussion at the student society in May The president-elect of the Oxford Union has been removed from his position after failing a vote of confidence that came after his disputed social media posts about Charlie Kirk. The vote against the student leader reached the required two-thirds threshold to remove him from office, according to an statement from the organization. Disputed Comments The dispute erupted after Mr Abaraonye reportedly posted messages on social media that appeared to welcome the death of Charlie Kirk, who was shot dead while speaking at a college in Utah. According to sources, one social media message reportedly read "Charlie Kirk got shot loool" - using an extended form of the phrase 'lol'. The president-elect is also reported to have posted in a WhatsApp chat with fellow students seeming to welcome the incident. Election Results The vote of confidence was conducted over the weekend, with outcomes revealed on this week. Society announcements showed that 1,228 ballots were cast supporting no confidence, while just over five hundred were against the motion. The notice confirmed that the future president was deemed to have stepped down in following the Oxford Union's rules. The Oxford Union announced the outcome of the no-confidence vote on Tuesday morning Procedural Disputes Proceedings were informally suspended early on the previous day after the returning officer was reportedly subjected to "obstruction, intimidation, and unwarranted hostility" from multiple individuals. In a statement, the student asserted that the vote tally had been stopped because electoral officials believed "no valid outcome could be reached as a result of procedural failures". His response unequivocally denied that any person appointed by the student had participated in threatening or obstructive conduct. Continuing Controversy The student stated that extremely serious issues had been submitted to the governing body and that he remained the elected leader. His comment added that he was "grateful and honored to have the support of significantly more than half of university members" who voted to have a "secure voting process and resist attempts to subvert democracy". Opponents have said that any decision to keep him would "demonstrate internationally that the society has chosen ideology over integrity". The conservative activist was fatally shot while speaking at a university in last month External Reactions On recently, Kirk's former chief of staff read out an open letter to the society on a related program podcast. The message accused the society of becoming a place where "presidents of the union openly applaud the assassination of a political opponent". The communication indicated that if the student were to keep his position, 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 Oxford Union had previously criticized Mr Abaraonye's comments after the activist's killing and confirmed that complaints filed against him had been referred for official review. The student leader had been one of multiple members to discuss with the activist at the society in May.