- New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern announced her resignation on Thursday.
- The surprise resignation will be official on February 7, before the country’s October election.
- Ardern said she “no longer had enough in the tank,” to continue in her position.
The prime minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern, shocked supporters on Thursday by announcing that she will not stand for reelection this fall.
“It’s time,” the 42-year-old, center-left politician said at her party’s annual meeting, The Guardian reported. In office since 2017, Ardern said she “no longer had enough in the tank.”
She will leave office by February 7, months before the general election scheduled in October.
Ardern said that, when she realized she did not have the energy to compete in the upcoming contest, “I knew unfortunately there wasn’t much alternative other than to hand over now,” CNN reported.
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