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Jacinda Ardern’s six years in office have been marked by tragedies, challenges, and victories. From the 2019 Christchurch Mosque attacks to the COVID–19 pandemic, she has maintained a relatively high approval rating from New Zealanders and international observers alike. Despite this, her time in office will come to an end “no later than the 7th of February,” marking the end of this era in the nation’s political history after she resigned on Thursday, saying that she no longer has “enough left in the tank” in her resignation speech.
Ardern rose to power in 2017 after a string of resignations by senior Labour Party officials. Within a year, she rose through the ranks from Member of Parliament (MP) to Deputy Labour Leader to Prime Minister.
In March 2017, Ardern was unanimously elected Deputy Leader of the party, succeeding fellow Labour MP Annette King, who stood down from the role. The new Deputy Leader didn’t have much of a chance to make an impact as she was only in the role for a short seven weeks before taking the top job as party leader. In July, she took over from Leader Andrew Little, who resigned after the party was placed at a record low in the polls. Ardern was once again thrust into power unopposed, cementing her place as the second female leader the party has ever had.
Just two months after her rise to power, she was faced with her first test: a national election. On the 23rd of September 2017, the nation took to the polls to elect their new prime minister. Ardern overcame Labour's unpopularity under Andrew Little to become New Zealand's 40th and third female Prime Minister, as well as the world's youngest leader at 37 years old. To do this, however, she would have to enter into a coalition. After nearly a month of negotiations, it was confirmed that she would partner up with New Zealand First, the nation’s nationalist and populist party, which would see their leader, Winston Peters, become Deputy Prime Minister for the second time in his career.
One of the most defining moments of her premiership came in 2019 following the Christchurch mosque attacks, which saw the deaths of 51 people, making it the deadliest mass shooting in the nation’s history. Ardern strongly denounced the attacker, saying that “you may have chosen us, but we utterly reject and condemn you," further promising that “our gun laws will change." That promise was swiftly delivered, with the nation banning military-style semi-automatic weapons just six days after the attacks.
Another defining moment of her premiership came in the form of COVID-19. Ardern was widely praised for her original COVID “elimitation” policy, which saw strict lockdowns for international visitors and helped New Zealand maintain a low number of mortalities. This came at a great cost, however. Many New Zealanders who lived abroad felt isolated from their families and friends, as strict lockdowns meant there were long periods of self-isolation and limited places to isolate when travelling from outside of the country.
Despite the crises she has faced, she has been praised for her role in promoting feminism on the global political stage. Ardern became only the second elected modern world leader in history to give birth while in office in 2018. She redefined the role of mothers in positions of power, showing that pregnancy and motherhood don’t affect the work of a prime minister. No example was clearer than when she brought her daughter, Neve, onto the floor of the United Nations General Assembly in 2018. Though Ardern repeatedly faced criticism and misogyny because of this, she was again praised for her responses to these comments, famously saying “I’m not the first woman to multi-task."
This wasn’t the last time she faced misogyny, facing questions over a visit from the Finnish Prime Minister, Sanna Marin. One reporter asked Ardern whether the two were meeting due to the fact that they “are similar in age” and had a lot of similarities when they entered politics. She was quick to answer, questioning if anyone ever asked this when former New Zealand PM, John Key, met with former US President, Barack Obama.
Yesterday, it was confirmed that the Leader of the House, Chris Hipkins, will replace her. Hipkins is expected to be unanimously confirmed by the 64 Labour MPs after being the only candidate to be nominated for the role.
Ardern’s resignation shocked New Zealanders and the world. She had been a strong voice for New Zealanders and many women in her six years in office, and her presence on the global stage will be missed. Now, the coveted role of Prime Minister will pass to Chris Hipkins, who will now have to fight to keep his party in power with an election approaching in October 2023.