Jacinda Ardern makes final speech as New Zealand PM
Jacinda Ardern addressed the Parliament for the last time as the Prime Minister of New Zealand on Wednesday. In her speech, the 42-year-old thanked her family, political party, and supporters for constantly backing her during her tenure of more than six years. Notably, Ardern stepped down from her position in January, saying she had "no more in the tank" to lead the country.
Ardern delivered emotional speech in Parliament
In her speech, Ardern reportedly said, "You can be anxious, sensitive, kind, and wear your heart on your sleeve. You can be a mother, or not, an ex-Mormon, or not, a nerd, a crier, a hugger - you can be all of these things, and... you can lead." "I thought I would need to change dramatically to survive. I didn't," she added.
Ardern opened up about her struggles in address
Opening up about the highs and lows of being a PM, Ardern said her political commitments— primarily child poverty, and New Zealand's clean green reputation— would return to haunt her. Her address also included the defining challenges of her leadership, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the Christchurch mosque shootings, and the Whakaari volcanic eruption.
Ardern became world's youngest female head of government in 2017
Ardern gained worldwide popularity after becoming the world's youngest female head of government in 2017 at the age of 37. Furthermore, she made global headlines for taking her then-three-month-old daughter to a United Nations (UN) meeting in September 2018. However, rising crime, controversial reforms, and soaring inflation in New Zealand pushed the Labour Party leader to quit politics.
