Student Society Future Leader Ousted Following Conservative Activist Posts

Oxford Union debate
The activist and student leader took part in a debate at the student society in May

The future president of the Oxford Union has been removed from his position after losing a vote of confidence that followed his disputed online comments about the conservative activist.

The motion against George Abaraonye reached the necessary two-thirds threshold to remove him from office, according to an statement from the organization.

Disputed Comments

The dispute began after Mr Abaraonye reportedly shared messages on social media that seemed to welcome the death of the American conservative figure, 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 elongated version of the phrase 'lol'.

The president-elect is also said to have written in a WhatsApp chat with other members seeming to welcome the incident.

Vote Outcome

The no-confidence motion took place over the weekend, with outcomes announced on this week.

Official notices indicated that over twelve hundred votes were cast supporting no confidence, while 501 were opposed the motion.

The notice confirmed that the president-elect was deemed to have resigned in accordance with the Oxford Union's rules.

Society notice
The student society shared the outcome of the confidence motion on this week

Election Controversies

Voting operations were informally suspended early on Monday after the returning officer was reportedly subjected to "interference, threats, and inappropriate behavior" from multiple individuals.

In a response, Mr Abaraonye claimed that the count had been halted because election administrators believed "no legitimate and true result could be reached as a result of process errors".

His statement categorically refuted that any person appointed by the student had engaged in intimidating or disruptive behavior.

Ongoing Dispute

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

His statement 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 "safe election and resist attempts to subvert democracy".

Opponents have said that any decision to keep him would "signal to the world that the society has chosen ideology over integrity".

Conservative activist
The conservative activist was shot dead while speaking at a college in last month

External Responses

On Friday, Kirk's former chief of staff read out an public message to the society on The Charlie Kirk Show podcast.

The letter criticized the society of becoming a institution where "presidents of the union openly applaud the killing of a political opponent".

The communication indicated that if the student were to keep his position, supporters would "directly reach out to every U.S. political figure who has ever spoken at the society and urge them never again to lend their name".

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

The president-elect had been one of multiple members to discuss with Kirk at the society in May.

Shane Smith
Shane Smith

A passionate environmental technologist and writer, dedicated to exploring how innovation can drive sustainability and positive change.