New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has made a shocking announcement that she will step down by February 7 and will not be seeking a re-election.
In a press conference held on Thursday, the 42-year-old Ardern said she will stand aside for a new leader within weeks, adding that "it's time" and that she "just don't have enough in the tank for another four years."
New Zealand will go to the elections in October, and several poll figures show the support for Ardern and her centre-left Labour Party is its lowest since he became the premier in 2017.
"The decision was my own," Ardern said. "Leading a country is the most privileged job anyone could ever have, but also the most challenging. You cannot and should not do the job unless you have a full tank, plus a bit in reserve for those unplanned and unexpected challenges," she added.
The Prime Minister also said that her resignation would take effect before February 7 and the Labour caucus would elect a new leader, who will be prime minister until the next general election, this Sunday.
However, Ardern clarified that there was "no secret" behind her resignation. "This summer, I had hoped to find a way to prepare for not just another year, but another term - because that is what this year requires. I have not been able to do that," Ardern, 42, told a news conference.
"I know there will be much discussion in the aftermath of this decision as to what the so called 'real' reason was... The only interesting angle you will find is that after going on six years of some big challenges, that I am human," she continued.
"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 also clarified that she believed Labour would win the upcoming election. "I am not leaving, because I believe we cannot win the next election, but because I believe we can and will," she said.
Her resigntion has come as a huge shock to the New Zealanders as she still remained the country’s preferred prime minister despite her party not being preffered by many.
Though the names of Police and Education Minister Chris Hipkins, Justice Minister Kiri Allan and Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson are doing the rounds, Robertson has already gone on record that he was not in the running.
Ardern, who became the Prime Minister at the age of 37, was one of the youngest leaders in the world. She was re-elected for a second term in 2020 and was widely hailed for the stance on multiple issues, including the mass shootings at two mosques in Christchurch in 2019 and Covid outbreak.
Under her leadership, New Zealand tackled Covid outbreak through some of the strictest measures globally but also managed to keep death tolls one of the lowest in the world.
She also was hailed as a gender icon and youth, coining the phrase "Jacinda-mania".
