Jacinda Ardern Legacy in New Zealand

During her time as Prime Minister from 2017 to 2023, Ardern became known for her compassionate and empathetic leadership style, which stood in contrast to other world leaders at the time, such as Donald Trump and Boris Johnson. However, Ardern’s leadership was also tested by several major crises during her time in office. The Christchurch mosque shootings in March 2019 left 51 people dead and prompted Ardern to take swift action to ban semi-automatic weapons and assault rifles. The volcanic eruption on White Island in December 2019 killed 22 people, and the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 also tested Ardern’s leadership skills.

She emphasized the importance of kindness, sensitivity, and inclusivity in effective leadership, and this approach brought significant changes to New Zealand. Today we’re taking a look at Jacinda Ardern’s legacy for New Zealand and the world.

Who is Jacinda Ardern

Jacinda Ardern made history when she was elected as New Zealand’s prime minister in 2017 at the age of 37, becoming the youngest female head of government in the world.

Born in Hamilton, Ardern joined the Labour Party at the age of 17 and worked as a researcher in the office of Prime Minister Helen Clark after graduating from the University of Waikato in 2001. She later worked in London as an adviser in the Cabinet Office during Tony Blair’s premiership. Ardern was first elected as an MP in the 2008 general election and was later elected as deputy leader of the Labour Party in 2017. Five months later, she became the leader of the party after Andrew Little’s resignation, leading the party to gain 14 seats at the 2017 general election. After negotiations, Ardern formed a minority coalition government with New Zealand First, supported by the Green Party, and was sworn in as prime minister in October 2017. And, a year later she became the second elected world leader to ever give birth while in office, after Pakistan’s Benazir Bhutto in 1990.

Ardern’s Notable Accomplisments

Jacinda Ardern’s legacy as the leader of New Zealand is marked by her efforts to reduce poverty and combat climate change. Ardern, promised to halve child poverty in New Zealand within a decade and, as part of that effort, she announced her government’s Families Package in July 2018, which introduced a range of measures to support low and middle-income families with young children, including increasing paid parental leave to 26 weeks and introducing a universal BestStart Payment. The government also substantially increased the Family Tax Credit, Orphans Benefit, Accommodation Supplement, and Foster Care Allowance. The government’s efforts to reduce poverty also included providing free doctor’s visits, menstrual hygiene products in schools, and adding to state housing stock.

Another one’s of Ardern’s commitments has been combating climate change, an initiative that was demonstrated when she declared a climate change emergency in New Zealand on the nd2 December 2020. She pledged that the government would be carbon neutral by 2025, with the public sector required to buy only electric or hybrid vehicles, and all 200 coal-fired boilers in public service buildings to be phased out. The motion was supported by the Labour, Green, and Māori parties, but was opposed by the opposition National and ACT parties. However, climate activist Greta Thunberg criticized Ardern’s record on climate change, saying that emissions in New Zealand have not fallen. “It’s funny that people believe Jacinda Ardern and people like that are climate leaders. That just tells you how little people know about the climate crisis … the emissions haven’t fallen.”

Ardern is also the second world leader in modern times to give birth in office, a pregnancy she found out about only days before she formed her first government. On her final speech in the Parliament, she opened up about her fertility struggles, saying that when she became leader of her party, she had “experienced a failed IVF round” not long before and threw herself into the election campaign, rather than dwell on her disappointment. In a prime time interview that aired Tuesday, cameras followed Ardern as she cleared out her office. Among her keepsakes: a temporary United Nations badge issued to her 3-month-old daughter, “Ms. Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford,” who became a “first baby” when she accompanied her mother to the U.N. General Assembly in New York in 2018.

Christchurch mosque shootings

On March 15, 2019, 51 people were killed and 49 injured in a terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch. Ardern was quick to offer condolences and described the attack as a well-planned terrorist act carried out by extremists with no place in New Zealand or anywhere else in the world.

Ardern declared a period of national mourning and opened a national condolence book in the capital, Wellington, where she was the first signatory. She also visited Christchurch to meet with first responders and families of the victims. In an address to Parliament, Ardern declared that she would not say the name of the attacker and urged people to speak the names of those who were lost instead.

Ardern’s response to the shootings received widespread international praise, and a photo of her hugging a member of the Christchurch Muslim community with the word “peace” in English and Arabic was projected onto the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building. A 25-meter mural of the photo was also unveiled in May 2019.

In response to the shootings, Ardern’s government introduced stronger firearms regulations and passed a law banning most semiautomatic weapons and assault rifles, parts that convert guns into semiautomatic guns, and higher capacity magazines. The New Zealand Parliament passed the law less than a month after the attack.

Ardern also co-chaired the 2019 Christchurch Call summit with French President Emmanuel Macron, which aimed to bring together countries and tech companies to end the use of social media to promote terrorism and violent extremism.

The COVID-19 Pandemic

New Zealand’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic under the leadership of Jacinda Ardern has been widely praised as a success story. On 14 March 2020, Ardern announced that anyone entering the country would be required to isolate for 14 days. She then closed the borders to all non-citizens and non-permanent residents on 19 March. The country moved to alert level 4, including a nationwide lockdown, on 25 March.

Ardern’s regular use of interviews, press conferences, and social media during the pandemic was praised as a “masterclass in crisis communication” by The Washington Post’s Fifield. Alastair Campbell, a journalist and adviser in Tony Blair’s British government, commended Ardern for addressing both the human and economic consequences of the pandemic.

Despite the success of New Zealand’s policies, opposition from the far right, fueled in part by misogyny and misinformation, led to violent protests outside Parliament against vaccine mandates and other COVID restrictions. Post-lockdown opinion polls showed the Labour Party with nearly 60 per cent support, and in May 2020, Ardern rated 59.5 per cent as “preferred prime minister” in a Newshub-Reid Research poll. The number of lives saved by the response Ardern spearheaded was estimated as up to 80,000 by a team led by Shaun Hendy.

Public Image

Dogged throughout her term by sexist remarks and comments on her youth, the 42-year-old Ardern encouraged young people not to be deterred by outdated perceptions of what makes a good leader. “I do hope that I’ve demonstrated something else entirely. That you can be anxious, sensitive, kind, and wear your heart on your sleeve,” said Ardern, dressed in white, swathed in a traditional Maori cloak and fighting back tears, during her last speech in the Parliament. “You can be a mother or not. You can be an ex-Mormon or not. You can be a nerd, a crier, a hugger. You can be all of these things. And not only can you be here, you can lead just like me.”

Jacinda has been described as a celebrity politician who has attracted significant media attention and positive coverage from various outlets. Since she was elected leader of the Labour Party in 2017, the media has referred to the “Jacinda effect” and “Jacindamania.” Ardern’s international trips have received much attention, with her speech at the United Nations in New York drawing particular interest from the media. Ardern was often cast as an “antidote to Trumpism” and a foil to the muscular diplomacy of world leaders like Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

However, a year after Ardern formed her government, reports suggest that the public’s enthusiasm for “Jacindamania: was waning, and not enough of the promised changes were visible. Nonetheless, Ardern’s leadership following the Christchurch mosque shootings and the Whakaari/White Island eruption has earned her praise for revealing an empathy, steel, and clarity that brought New Zealanders together and inspired people worldwide.

What’s next for Jacinda Arden

Ardern stepped down in January but had remained in Parliament to avoid triggering an election ahead of the national one in October. Her resignation as prime minister came as a surprise, especially abroad, where her empathetic style of governance elevated her as a liberal feminist icon, even as her reputation at home was more mixed.

Ardern remains a prominent figure in global politics, and her life-long commitment to sustainable and environmental solutions has earned her a position as a trustee of the Earthshot Prize. Prince William, who established the prize, selected Ardern for the post, citing her commitment to supporting sustainable and environmental solutions. Ardern was also appointed Special Envoy for the Christchurch Call, which she created after the Christchurch mosque shootings to combat online extremist content.

As she continues to make an impact on the world stage, Ardern has accepted dual fellowships at the Harvard Kennedy School for a semester beginning in the fall of 2023. She will serve as the 2023 Angelopoulos Global Public Leaders Fellow and a Hauser Leader at the Center for Public Leadership, where she intends to share and learn leadership and governance skills. During this period, she will also work with Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society as its first Knight Tech Governance Leadership Fellow, focusing on the study of online extremism.

There’s no doubt that Ardern’s leadership has left a lasting legacy in New Zealand. She has prioritized issues such as mental health, child poverty, gender equality, and climate change, implementing policies and initiatives to address these issues. She has also been a vocal advocate for refugees and has demonstrated a commitment to social justice and global issues.

As Ardern steps away from politics altogether, she leaves behind a legacy that will shape New Zealand for years to come. Her emphasis on compassionate and empathetic leadership and her commitment to addressing social and global issues serve as a model for leaders around the world.

By Ioana Constantin