A US teacher has been fired following allegations that he told a black student who said he wanted to become president that the nation didn’t need another black president.

The Cincinnati Enquirer reports the Fairfield Board of Education voted 4-0 on Thursday to fire Gil Voigt.

Voigt didn’t immediately return a call for comment on Friday but has said the student misquoted him.

Voigt, who is white, says what he actually told the teen was that he doesn’t think the nation can afford another president like Barack Obama, “whether he’s black or white”.

A state referee investigating Voigt found that explanation wasn’t credible.

The referee cited other incidents over the years in which he says Voigt made other racial or insulting remarks.

Voigt had been on unpaid leave since December.