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The president-elect of the Oxford Union has been removed from his position after failing a vote of confidence that came after his disputed online comments about Charlie Kirk.

The vote against the student leader reached the necessary super-majority to oust him from his position, according to an announcement from the society.

Contentious Posts

The controversy erupted after Mr Abaraonye reportedly shared 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 reports, one social media message reportedly stated "Charlie Kirk got shot loool" - using an elongated version of the phrase 'lol'.

The student leader is also said to have written in a messaging group with fellow students seeming to welcome the incident.

Election Results

The no-confidence motion took place over the weekend, with outcomes revealed on Tuesday.

Official notices indicated that over twelve hundred votes were cast supporting removal, while just over five hundred were against the motion.

The notice stated that the future president was deemed to have stepped down in following the society's regulations.

Procedural Disputes

Proceedings 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, the student claimed that the vote tally had been halted because election administrators believed "no valid outcome could be reached as a result of process errors".

His statement categorically refuted that any representative appointed by the student had participated in threatening or obstructive conduct.

Ongoing Dispute

The president-elect maintained 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 backing of significantly more than half of university members" who supported a "secure voting process and resist attempts to subvert democracy".

Opponents have argued that any decision to keep him would "demonstrate internationally that the society has chosen ideology over integrity".

External Responses

On Friday, Mikey McCoy read out an public message to the society on The Charlie Kirk Show broadcast.

The letter criticized the society of becoming a place where "student leaders openly applaud the killing of a political opponent".

The statement warned that if Mr Abaraonye were to remain in post, supporters would "personally contact every American political speaker who has ever spoken at the society and advise them against future participation".

The Oxford Union had previously criticized Mr Abaraonye's comments after the activist's killing and stated that concerns submitted about him had been forwarded for disciplinary proceedings.

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