‘No more in the tank,’ says New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda while announcing resignation

WELLINGTON: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced her resignation. She is likely to announce her resignation on February 7. She is stepping down from the post of Prime Minister ten months before the end of her tenure. She said that she does not have enough in the tank for another four years. She said that she will also step down from the party’s leadership post at the time of leaving the Prime Ministerial post.

Jacinda, who became prime minister in a coalition government in 2017, led the centre-left Labor Party to a landslide victory in elections three years later, but there have been reports recently that her popularity is waning. It is not clear whether that is leading to her resignation.

Jacinda said the next general election will be held on October 14 and till then she will continue as the electorate MP. She clarified that there is no secret behind her resignation. ‘I'm a human and needed to step aside and for me it’s time. I'm leaving, because a post like this is a big responsibility,’ she said. People close to her said Jacinda's decision is to spend more time after stepping down from active politics.