Student Society President-Elect Removed Due to Conservative Activist Comments
The president-elect of the prestigious debating society has been ousted from office after failing a vote of confidence that followed his controversial online comments about the conservative activist.
The motion against the student leader reached the necessary two-thirds threshold to remove him from office, according to an statement from the organization.
Contentious Posts
The dispute began after Mr Abaraonye reportedly shared messages on online platforms that seemed to welcome the death of the American conservative figure, who was shot dead while addressing a university 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 student leader is also said to have posted in a WhatsApp chat with other members appearing to express approval of the event.
Vote Outcome
The vote of confidence took place over the weekend, with outcomes revealed on Tuesday.
Official notices showed that over twelve hundred votes were cast in favor of removal, while 501 were against the motion.
The announcement confirmed that the future president was considered to have resigned in accordance with the society's regulations.
Election Controversies
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, 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 procedural failures".
His response categorically refuted that any representative acting for the student had engaged in threatening or obstructive conduct.
Continuing Controversy
The president-elect maintained that significant concerns had been submitted to the disciplinary committee and that he continued as president-elect.
His comment added that he was "grateful and honored to have the support of significantly more than half of students at Oxford" who voted to have a "secure voting process and resist attempts to subvert democracy".
Critics have argued that any failure to remove him would "demonstrate internationally that the Oxford Union has chosen ideology over integrity".
External Reactions
On recently, Kirk's former chief of staff read out an open letter to the Oxford Union on a related program podcast.
The letter criticized the union of becoming a institution where "student leaders publicly celebrate the assassination of a ideological rival".
The statement indicated that if Mr Abaraonye were to remain in post, Kirk's allies would "personally contact every U.S. political figure who has ever spoken at the society and urge them never again to lend their name".
The society had previously condemned Mr Abaraonye's comments after the activist's killing and stated that concerns submitted about him had been referred for official review.
The student leader had been one of several students to debate with the activist at the society in spring.
