New Zealand Prime Minister announces resignation

"I will step down because the position of Prime Minister with its privileges comes with responsibility. Responsibility is knowing when you are the right person to lead and when you are not. I know what the job requires and I also know that I no longer have the energy to do it, it's that simple," New Zealand Prime Minister Ardern said today at an annual meeting of the ruling party.

Prime Minister Ardern, 42, said she would leave office before February 7, confirmed she would not run in the general election held on October 14 and expressed confidence that the New Zealand Labor Party would win.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Photo:NZ Herald

Ardern said she hoped to find the energy and enthusiasm to continue as prime minister through the summer, "but I haven't been able to do that." "These have been the most fulfilling five and a half years of my life," Ardern said, choking up.

The Labour Party will hold a secret ballot on January 22 to elect a new leader and prime minister. Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson has told Ms Ardern that he will not stand for prime minister.

"I'm not leaving because I don't think we can win, but because I believe we can and will," Ms Adern said, adding that there was no secret scandal behind her resignation. "I'm human. We give as much as we can for as long as we can and when the time comes, we have to leave. And for me, it's time."

Prime Minister Adern expressed confidence that the Labor Party has the policies to gain support and win the election, the party just needs the right leader.

When she became prime minister in 2017 at the age of 37, Ms. Ardern was New Zealand's third female leader and one of the youngest in the world. She was re-elected for a second term in 2020 thanks to her effective response to the Covid-19 pandemic, helping New Zealand avoid the devastating outbreaks seen elsewhere.

In December 2022, Ms. Ardern was forced to apologize after calling an opposition leader a "f**king bastard" during a parliamentary question period. The scandal emerged amid declining support for Prime Minister Ardern. Soaring prices are also a factor that puts great pressure on Ms. Ardern's government.