Jacinda Ardern resigns as prime minister of New Zealand

Labour leader to stand down no later than 7 February, saying she ‘no longer had enough in the tank’ to do the job.

With an election on the horizon, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has come out this week announcing her resignation from leader of the labour party.

Ardern became the world’s youngest female head of government when she was elected prime minister in 2017 at 37. Coraegulsy leading New Zealand through the Covid-19 pandemic, including several disasters, most notably the terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, and the White Island volcanic eruption.

“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. 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,” she said. “I am human, politicians are human. We give all that we can for as long as we can. And then it’s time. And for me, it’s time,” she said.

While remaining an MP until this years October election, her term as prime minister will conclude no later than 7 February.

Ardern said her decline in the polls did not prompt her decision to leave.

“I’m not leaving because I believe we can’t win the election, but because I believe we can and will, and we need a fresh set of shoulders for that challenge,” she said.

New Zealanders are set to go to the polls on October 14th. Recent polling had placed the Ardern-led Labour party slightly behind the opposition National.