In a press conference delivered at a Labour Party caucus retreat, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced her plans to resign no later than February 7.
Since coming into office in 2017, Jacinda Ardern has become not only one of the greatest Prime Ministers the world has ever seen, but also a role model for women around the world. Throughout her time in office, she’s navigated some of New Zealand’s most harrowing and troubling events. From the Christchurch massacre to the White Island eruption, and the uncertainty that engulfed the world as the pandemic sunk its claws into every corner of the globe, Ardern has led with integrity and compassion.
Her success as Prime Minister can’t be overstated. While here in Australia, tensions ran high as various states looked to impose their own lockdown restrictions, Ardern made the decision to lock down a country of five million and collectively work towards eliminating Covid-19. While other governments were less cautious and hesitant to impose such drastic measures, the fact was that in just a few short months Covid had been contained in New Zealand.
Perhaps what makes Ardern a great leader is, as the The Guardian describes, her “absence of ego.” She’s never been one to seek power, and having served as deputy leader for nine years, it was ultimately her Labour Party colleagues who convinced her to assume the leadership. For many, it was sad news then to hear Ardern announce that she is officially resigning from the role, telling her party that she will be out of office no later than February 7.
Addressing the media, the Labour leader said she felt it time to step back from the role as she “no longer had enough in the tank” for the task at hand. “I am human, politicians are human,” said Ardern. “We give all that we can for as long as we can. And then it’s time. And for me, it’s time. I’m leaving, because with such a privileged role comes responsibility. The responsibility to know when you are the right person to lead and also when you are not.”
She added, “I know what this job takes. And I know that I no longer have enough in the tank to do it justice. It’s that simple.”
During her time, Ardern confronted a terrorist massacre and banned semi-automatic weapons. She reformed firearms law in the aftermath of the Christchurch massacre, and when the world seemed polarised over responses to Covid-19, she implemented a world-leading alert level system to combat the outbreaks. In response to the urgent threat of climate change, she declared an emergency in New Zealand in 2020 and pledged to make the country climate neutral by 2025. In 2022, she also delivered a historic and “long overdue” Crown apology to the Ngati Maniapoto tribe for the failures of previous New Zealand governments to uphold the Treaty of Waiting and the “intergenerational suffering” inflicted on Māori people as a result.
Along with her accomplishments in office, Ardern is the only world leader to give birth while serving as Prime Minister, welcoming her daughter, Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford in 2018. But political careers are demanding of one’s time and mental capacity, with all thoughts going towards a country, its people and their livelihoods. Ardern had always promised that she would be home when Neve entered primary school and it was this she addressed in her speech. Ardern spoke directly to her daughter, promising that mum is coming home, before addressing her partner Clarke, promising that they can finally marry.
“I hope I leave New Zealanders with a belief that you can be kind, but strong, empathetic but decisive, optimistic but focused,” said Ardern.
